Rot-Weiss Essen welcomes Dynamo Dresden on matchday 12 of the 3rd division. A look back shows a balanced record – with special significance of the home advantage.

The 12th matchday in the 3rd division will see a much-anticipated clash: Rot-Weiss Essen welcomes second-division relegated Dynamo Dresden for a home match at Hafenstraße (Saturday, 15 October, 2 p.m., RS-Liveticker). A duel that expresses pure football tradition – although the teams have not faced each other that often.

Only eight times, to be precise. There is a simple reason for this: in the heyday of both clubs, Germany was still a divided country. And even after reunification, it took quite a while for the two traditional clubs to meet for the first time. It took place on 3 August 2002 in the then Regionalliga Nord and ended 0:0 – emblematic of the following record.

Balance completely balanced

Because it is balanced on the one hand and low-scoring on the other. RWE won twice, Dynamo twice and Essen drew four times with a total of 6:5 goals. The last encounter was won at home by Dresden in 2008 (1:0), who qualified for the newly formed 3rd division at the end of the season. For Rot-Weiss it continued in the Regionalliga West.

So now comes the reunion after more than 14 years. The guests, who were relegated from the second division, are self-proclaimed contenders for promotion and come to Essen with a broad chest from six games without defeat (four wins, two draws). They currently occupy fourth place in the table, one point behind the relegation place.

From RWE’s point of view, the 3-0 away win at SC Freiburg II seems all the more important, as it has given the league newcomers some breathing space in the relegation battle and put some distance between them and the lower ranks. The trend of the past home games is also positive: Rot-Weiss have been undefeated at home for three games and have won twice recently. This is not insignificant for the upcoming match, because in all eight encounters with Dynamo Dresden, the away team never won.