The City-St. Georgen-Eisenstadt derby: a second-tier football festival with flaws

Derby time in the second division north, how! With UFC St. Georgen, the club from the north-eastern region of the same name, and SC Eisenstadt, newly founded in 2018 and the club’s legal heir to the traditional club SCE, which closed in 2008, two true local rivals met for the first time in a championship match. St. George I played the top tier, last year SC Eisenstadt and “Schurldorfer”, as St. Georgen, switches places and thus loses them too. SCE was in the first tier, and the UFC in the second. After relegation, it is now 23/24 this season. The first city derby for these two clubs was played at the Georgian Stadium in the first round.

The interest was impressive. At least 1,200 visitors wanted to watch the match. UFC President Erwin Nemeth: “It was a great organizational effort up front, we expected between 800 and 1,000 spectators.

Nothing obvious weakness on the field

The derby time was announced twice on the field. Because even in the game of reserves, the guests face off against the young saint. Gurgen managed to win clearly 5: 0, and the ranks were already full. On the fighting teams, coach Hans-Peter Kosulits’ team prevailed 3-1 and secured their first derby victory. Aptly, the Eisenstadt SC staff also recognized it.

Dispensable fan cheers and forbidden posters

However, outsiders mingled with the football festival. On the other hand, because St. George’s fans, in addition to supporting their own team, repeatedly sang completely unnecessary offensive songs – not in effect and because of any controversial situation on the field, but also because the game was in fact. The decision is already made. “We’re sorry that something like this won’t happen to us again,” Nemeth explained to BVZ. The fact that no one intervened on the site (the boss himself was in Germany at the time) still needs clarification, also due to the fact that most of the coaches and managers were fully involved in the derby even during the match.

Specific plans: official fan club and fan representative

That is why the club president draws his conclusions: “We have thought out almost everything in advance so that nothing happens and everything goes well: stewards, securities, police, staff – but unfortunately not one thing: some kind of fan representative. So we didn’t Nobody feels responsible in this situation.”

The two young men who started cheering were going to push the group away. The mistake: the juniors in the first place chose the worst (worst) type of playground chant. President Nemeth wants to start here: uphold yes, absolutely equally, but the necessary principles of justice. “We have developed as a club, we have the right number of spectators and we will also be active here in the fan sector in the future. There will be training and we want to install a fan representative. We still don’t have an official fan club, there was one in the days of the Burgenland league. That must also be created in the future “There will also be a code of conduct. We still play football here, and there is a lot of emotion involved, but the framework has to be appropriate. Of course, it is also about the content.”

Nemeth also commented on the homophobic posters that appeared at Georgian Stadium. “Of course we didn’t know anything about it. I saw such a poster then – it was primitively made and obviously specially made. Of course, as an association, we obviously stay away from it, and the posters have also been removed. Something like that is of course forbidden.” “.

Statement by the Saudi Council of Engineers: “…then one should not be surprised if some things escalate.”

On the part of SC Eisenstadt, the officials responded with a statement from Athletic Director Robert Winstable: “First of all, congratulations to coach Hans-Peter Kossulets and his team for their sporting success. To be honest, I’m not surprised by other off-court incidents. Because if the UFC put St. Georgen Evidence of confrontation, from baseless bans on SCE officials, youth matches by interference in the Federation against our Young Reds rejected and accepted derby as a condition of justice not even the line-up of our squad, one shouldn’t be surprised if some heated things escalate for years.

Finally, I want to thank our fans for the amazing and, above all, fair support on what was not an easy evening! “

Based on the statement, it is also clear that the aforementioned rivalry between the two clubs runs deeper. Erwin Nemeth makes his point here: “SCE officials and coaches have already been very active in recruiting our young players in the past. It was just a logical step for us not to seek closeness here. With us, apart from the goalkeeper, no player receives a fixed account allowance. In At the same time, our boys have been repeatedly asked to make money there. Practically we only have self-taught players, we have built the whole philosophy of the club this way – these methods, which started with the youth, are pure poison for our base. We have worked for all this and want to continue reaping the fruits in the future.”

The throwing of the cup caused discontent on the part of the house

Back to Derby on Friday night. The aforementioned chants, in turn, faced a sensitive situation on the part of the guests. After Oliver Mannix made it 3-0 and the St George players cheered, a trophy was thrown onto the field twice. Fortunately no one was injured, but the cups (especially the second one) flew menacingly in the direction of the kicks. “The cup draw was completely unnecessary,” said Markus Bauer, SCE team host, who was in the middle of the action himself.

what’s left? Realizing that another local derby in Burgenland would add plenty of pepper and spice. Well, exactly these games need football. The fact that in the upcoming derby, in addition to all the emotions, more attention should be paid to fairness is also evident. Erwin Nemeth, for example, wants one thing here: “Compete, but with measure and purpose on all sides – including us.”

Round table with city council and club officials

In this context, there should also be a meeting in the form of a round table with those in charge of the club and Eisenstadt mayor Thomas Steiner. The goal: to reduce the escalation of the issue and to coexist without conflict as much as possible. All of this seems like constructive steps in the right direction. And if these are the lessons from the first derby, we can already look forward to the second meeting between the two local rivals in March 2024.