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27.02.2022
Profis, ADMIRAL Bundesliga, Spielbericht

A return to winning ways against WSG Tirol

We’re into the last two rounds of the ADMIRAL Bundesliga regular season, and the 21st matchday took us to WSG Tirol on Sunday. Looking at the standings, the goal was clear: to return to Hütteldorf with three points in the bag, and take a step towards the top six. The previous games hadn't gone according to plan, but now a turnaround was needed in order to stay in touch with the Championship Group. Ferdinand Feldhofer made a few changes to the starting 11, which is why youngster Berni Zimmermann made his professional debut up front. However, the terrible events in Ukraine, which we have of course felt keenly, were the main topic of the day. That’s why, together with the WSG players, we held up signs for peace: in addition to a minute's silence, we sent out the important message, "Stop War".

The first chance in the game fell to our team; after a shot on goal by debutant Zimmermann, Thorsten Schick got the ball to Robert Ljubicic, whose header was only just off target (5’). A mere two minutes later there was a reason to be cheerful: a foul close to the edge of the box left Marco Grüll with a direct free-kick. He didn’t need another invitation to shoot, and after a quick run up he slammed the ball past the wall and powerfully beyond the grasp of the home goalkeeper, and more importantly into the back of the net for 1-0 (7’)! It took almost 20 minutes until the next chance came around, but it was worth the wait: Thorsten Schick got the ball on the right of the area, he laid it off to Kelvin Arase, who controlled it perfectly with one foot and fired in with a swift second touch: 2-0 (23’)! Just four minutes later Ferdy Druijf had a go with a fine effort from distance, it looked spectacular, but unfortunately it didn’t bring us a third goal (28’). The Tyroleans then pressed for a goal back before the break, but young stopper Niki Hedl did well to keep them out on the stroke of half time, so the score remained 2-0 to Rapid after 45 minutes. 

Kelvin Arase has now scored 4 of his 9 total league goals against WSG Tirol © GEPA

We came out of the dressing room unchanged, and the Watteners tried to push their way forward and back into the game, but they couldn’t create much danger in the final third. We had the first chance to score in the second half when Robert Ljubicic tried to place the ball with finesse, but the shot failed to beat the goalkeeper (65’). In the 73rd minute, debutant Berni Zimmermann's workday was over and Jonas Auer stepped onto the Tyrolean turf. The next chance came from another Marco Grüll free kick, this time from much further out but his shot fizzed just past the post (77’). Now it was time to focus on shoring things up for the three points. Ferdinand Feldhofer brought in a new defensive reinforcement in the form of Srdjan Grahovac, who replaced goal scorer Kelvin Arase (84’). Philipp Schobesberger also celebrated his comeback in the Bundesliga, and gave Marco Grüll a break (88’). Immediately after his substitution he had a chance for the third goal, as he cut back nicely on the left and got a shot away, but the goalkeeper was able to claim the ball on its way towards the top corner (89’). This was to be the last chance of the game, and after 93 minutes we had indeed taken all three points!

After an effective performance, and a strong and courageous away display, we went back to Hütteldorf with the all-important points. A well-deserved away win, which was absolutely vital in the tight race for a place in the Championship Group. The final match awaits us on Sunday against Austria Klagenfurt, and with our fate in our own hands, we’re already looking forward to your support in the stadium! Let's go, Rapid!

Fotos: GEPA

ADMIRAL Bundesliga | 21. Runde | Tivoli Stadion

Tore: Grüll (7.), Arase (23.)

Rapid-11: Hedl; Moormann, Wimmer, Aiwu, Schick ©; Grüll (88. Schobesberger), Ljubicic, Petrovic, Arase (84. Grahovac); Druijf, Zimmermann (73. Auer)

Ersatz: Gartler, Schobesberger, Knasmüllner, Demir, Grahovac, Auer, Oswald

Stimmen zum Auswärtssieg in Tirol

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Unsere beiden Treffer zum Nachsehen!

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Die Highlights zum Spiel

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