On Sunday we travelled to Lower Austria to face an improving Wiener Neustadt in the knowledge that only a maximum points haul would be considered a good result. Despite the carrot of a final victory before heading into the international break, the first half turned out to be a difficult, and largely uninspiring, one from a Green & White perspective. With the hosts scrapping for their lives at the foot of the table the game proved to be a testy affair, with Rapid called upon to match a committed Neustadt side and compete for second balls and stray passes. Mario Pavelic had the first sight of goal for Zoran Barisic’s side, but home keeper Vollnhofer dealt with the effort comfortably. Testing first periodThe better openings during the first half were created by Wiener Neustadt, who actually had the ball in the net on eighteen minutes, but celebrations were cut abruptly short by the referee, who spotted a foul on Jan Novota in the build up to Sereinig’s headed goal. Novota was beaten for a second time shortly afterwards, as Hofbauer unleashed a rocket of an effort from fully thirty meters that was still rising as it crashed onto the crossbar before bouncing down directly onto the goal line and into a grateful Novota's arms (26.). Just as it looked like a goal for Wiener Neustadt might be in the offing, things got worse for Rapid: Louis Schaub had to depart proceedings after going over in what looked an innocuous challenge inside the opposition penalty area. Scans have unfortunately revealed that Schaub has broken a bone in his foot and will be side-lined for the foreseeable future, we all wish Louis a speedy recovery! Steffen Hofmann came on to replace the young forward, and the Captain's experience and nous would prove vital in dragging Rapid into a match they had hereto had very little joy out of. Hütteldorfers hit their stride in second period Unsurprisingly Zoran Barisic got into his players at half time, and a re-invigorated Rapid, led by Steffen Hofmann, emerged for the second half and quickly went about wrestling back the initiative. The first attack of the half yielded instant results as Philipp Schobesberger showed great determination and no little skill in weaving past three defenders in a tight area just outside the six yard box, before putting a simple chance on a plate for Robert Beric, who gratefully accepted, turning the ball home from two yards out into an unguarded net - 1:0 (48.)! With the goal, the calmness and confidence lacking in the first half returned to a side who began to dominate proceedings. The next chance again fell to Beric, whose flashed header from a sharp Flo Kainz cross just cleared the crossbar, before Mario Sonnleitner tested Vollnhofer with a header as Rapid went in search of a second goal cushion (70.). Then, little over five minutes later it looked as though the second had arrived: a perfect ball from Kainz picked out Schobesberger, who's cute flick with the outside of the boot guided the ball past the onrushing Wiener Neustadt keeper, only for Susac to sprint back towards his own goal and with mere centimetres to spare, hook the ball off the line. Susac's clearance only went as far as Mario Pavelic however, who steadied himself before smashing an effort from the right hand side of the penalty area against the crossbar (76.)! Somehow the score line remained 1:0.   The points return to the capitalAt the final whistle the one goal margin remained intact, and an improved second half display had won the game for Rapid. In what has been a very unpredictable Bundesliga season, this three points could prove to be crucial: the Hüttledorfers have now narrowed the gap to leaders Salzburg to just six points, with the possibility of a late title charge not completely out of the picture. The win also saw Barisic's side climb back into second spot in the table. Wins at difficult grounds like Wiener Neustadt when the team isn’t at 100% might just ensure Rapid, still in the ÖFB Cup, remain in the hunt until the final weeks of the season. Trainer Zoran Barisic: "We weren’t happy with the first half, it was simply not enough. We were better in the second. We could have killed them off sooner but had a bit of bad luck. But the most important thing is getting the win. I think the guys have shown a superb reaction in the second half. We knew this would be an important match. We’re happy that we’ve come through."tipico Bundesliga, Match Day 26:Wr. Neustadt - SK Rapid 0:1 (0:0)Stadion Wr. Neustadt, 4.280 Attendance, Ref Kollegger Goal: 0:1 Beric (48.) Wr. Neustadt: Vollnhofer - T. Kainz, Susac, Sereinig, Prettenthaler - Osman Ali (68./Rauter), Freitag, Hofbauer, Denner (62./Schöpf) - Hellquist (77./Tieber), Dobras SK Rapid: Novota - Pavelic, Sonnleitner, M. Hofmann, Schrammel - Petsos, Schwab - Schobesberger (90./Alar), Schaub (41./S. Hofmann), F. Kainz (84./Stangl) - Beric Yellow Cards: Osman Ali, Rauter F. Kainz, Petsos(gw)
25.03.2015