Sportfreunde Hamborn 07 celebrated a 3:1 victory over Germania Ratingen on the penultimate matchday of the Oberliga Niederrhein. Nevertheless, their fate cannot be averted.
The relegation battle in the Oberliga Niederrhein has turned into a nightmare for Sportfreunde Hamborn 07 in recent weeks. After two defeats against their direct rivals (0:4 against Frintrop and 3:4 against Mülheimer FC 97), relegation has become a distant prospect.
Three points were absolutely essential on the last two matchdays of the season. The Hamborn Lions put in a very strong performance against Germania Ratingen 04/19, beating the visitors from Ratingen 3:1 at home in the MiRO Sportarena – but in the end it was not to be.
Joel Bayram put the home side ahead early on with a lob and breathed new hope into the Lions. Denzel-Kwaku Kwakye Tawiah (63′) and Pascal Spors (77′) increased the lead to 3:0 for the home side. Ali Hassan Hammoud’s goal was only cosmetic in the end.
Marcel Stenzel, coach of Hamborn, was thoroughly satisfied after the match and praised the attitude of his charges: “The team showed absolute discipline and compactness. Of course, Ratingen have their playful resources, we knew that and were prepared accordingly.”
In particular, Hamborn’s transition game went perfectly on Sunday. “We defended really well, switched gears at the right moments and scored the goals,” said the 32-year-old.
It was particularly striking how unimaginative the visitors from Ratingen looked. Hamborn made it brutally difficult for them and the match plan drawn up by the coaching team seemed to work perfectly. Stenzel also underlined that after the final whistle: “In terms of tactics, it was similar to the game against Mülheim. We speculated on losing possession and wanted to set the tone – that was definitely successful.”
However, DJK Adler Union Frintrop’s point in the parallel match against 1. FC Kleve and Mülheimer FC 97’s late equalizer against SC St. Tönis meant that Hamborn’s fate was no longer in doubt. Hamborn 07 have to go down to the Landesliga.
Sportfreunde Hamborn 07 will host Spielvereinigung Schonnebeck on the last matchday of the season at Schetters Busch – their last game in the Oberliga Niederrhein for the time being. Germania Ratingen will close out the 23/24 season at home against SC St. Tönis