Sportfreunde Siegen are unbeaten after eleven matchdays in the Regionalliga West, but have already drawn six games. “The boys are up for it, the coaching team is up for it, the clubs are up for it.”
Westfalia Herne is undefeated at home in the Westfalenliga. That’s one of the reasons why coach Misel Zec is in good spirits ahead of the derby against DSC Wanne-Eickel.
After ten match days, Westfalia Herne’s season in the Westfalenliga has been mixed. Now a real derby awaits.
Three wins, four draws, three defeats – that’s Westfalia Herne’s record. This puts coach Misel Zec’s team in tenth place. Westfalia started the season with two defeats and a draw, then went six games unbeaten – before losing their most recent match 4-0 at TuS Erndtebrück. We could certainly have kept it more even, but Erndtebrück did well and pushed the score up in the end,“ says Zec, who doesn’t want to dwell too much on the defeat because, ”My boys are doing really well at the moment.”
The goal difference is curious: 20 goals scored against 22 goals conceded, Westfalia stands for real spectacle. “That’s not really my style of play,” admits the coach. “But we have played offensively. However, we need to defend better. We make a lot of silly mistakes and concede too many goals from set pieces. We need to improve in that area.”
Westfalia Herne strong at home, ready for the derby?
The chance to do better comes in a Herne derby, as DSC Wanne-Eickel visits Westfalia on the next match day. Wanne-Eickel is in fifth place with 18 points from ten games, five points ahead of the hosts. Nevertheless, it’s a game that Zec and his team are looking forward to. “Of course, it’s a different game than usual, a real traditional rivalry. The boys are up for it, the coaching team is up for it, the clubs are up for it. I don’t have to motivate anyone extra,” says the coach, eagerly awaiting the game.
We simply have the advantage at home thanks to the fans and our pitch. Compared to other pitches in the area, it is very, very large. That makes it easier for us to play on.
Misel Zec
Zec naturally wants to keep the points at home, where Westfalia is still undefeated. “We simply have the advantage at home thanks to our fans and our pitch. Compared to other pitches in the area, it is very, very large. That makes it easier for us to play.”
It’s good for Zec’s team that they also have a home game against DSC Wanne-Eickel. The game will take place on Sunday, October 19. Kick-off at EDEKA Koch Sportpark is at 3:30 p.m. The next three points are up for grabs against RWO. After eleven games in the Regionalliga West, Sportfreunde Siegen are still unbeaten, but after four draws in a row, they already have six draws. Now Rot-Weiß Oberhausen is coming to Siegerland.
Seven games, top of the table with 17 points – that was the score for Sportfreunde Siegen in mid-September. Four match days later, the promoted team has slipped to fourth place after four consecutive draws. “We are still undefeated, which we can of course be proud of,” says Sportfreunde coach Thorsten Nehrbauer, but he also adds: “The four draws hurt us a bit, especially because we were the better team in all but the Lotte game.”
There were draws against the youth teams of VfL Bochum (1-1) and Borussia Mönchengladbach (3-3), as well as against Sportfreunde Lotte (0-0) and Wuppertaler SV (1-1).
Nehrbauer struggles with many draws
“Anyone could have won the 0-0 draw in Lotte. We were clearly better than WSV, and in Bochum we were denied two clear penalties in my opinion. In Gladbach, we dominated the fifth-placed team but gave away the points due to individual mistakes,” said the coach, struggling with the past few weeks.
The recent friendly against Borussia Dortmund’s U23s – which, fittingly, ended 1-1 – gives cause for optimism. “It was a good test, we were able to use some players who needed to catch up. We were able to test different systems against a high-quality opponent,” Nehrbauer said, satisfied with the recent match.
After the international break, Rot-Weiß Oberhausen will be a big test for Sportfreunde. RWO has won five of its last six games, including a celebrated victory over Rot-Weiss Essen in the Niederrhein Cup.
Of course, we want to stay at the top now. But we know how strong the league is and remain humble.
Thorsten Nehrbauer
“It’s a duel between two traditional clubs. We are of course wary and have Oberhausen’s recent performances on our radar. We want to maintain our streak and keep three points in Siegen. It will be an exciting duel between two evenly matched teams,” says Nehrbauer, looking forward to the game with anticipation.
Overall, the Siegen coach is absolutely satisfied with the season so far without any defeats. “We intend to continue to improve, but we are very happy with the development. The phase was less satisfactory in terms of results, but we wanted to get away from the relegation zone quickly, and every extra point helps. Of course, we now want to hold on to our position at the top. However, we know how strong the league is and remain humble.” The next chance to pick up points comes on Saturday (October 18) against Rot-Weiß Oberhausen. Kick-off at the Leimbachstadion is at 2 p.m.