With 28 points from 19 games and fifth place in the table in the Upper Austrian league, Robert Pessentheiner, coach of the Friedburg/Pöndorf syndicate, is quite satisfied. It’s just that things aren’t “going well” at home this year. While the Friedburgers even occupy fourth place in the away table, they have only collected nine points on their own pitch so far. This is reflected in the meager 14th place in the home table. A new situation for the Friedburgers, because in recent years it has always been the other way around. “If I knew why, I would react immediately, but I just don’t know why we’re having such a hard time at home this year,” says Pessentheiner. Basically, it doesn’t matter where the gaming community scores. “However, it would be nice if we could do something good for ourselves and win at home,” says the coach.
No excuses
The next opportunity is on Saturday when Bad Schallerbach comes to the Cafe+Co Arena Friedburg. Not an easy task, although the guests are only 13th in the table. “Bad Schallerbach is in the middle of a relegation battle and has its back to the wall. Anything can happen in games like this,” Robert Pessentheiner is convinced. On Saturday he has to do without Alexander Burgstaller, who was sent off in the 1-1 draw against Micheldorf in the 66th minute with a yellow card. “Alex has played through all the games so far and we will of course miss him, but we are in a good position and can certainly compensate for this loss. In any case, it’s no excuse,” emphasizes the coach. Apart from Burgstaller, the entire squad should be available to him on Saturday – from the current perspective (as of Monday). But nothing is fixed in times like these. “But that can change every hour because of Corona. But we don’t assume and hope that we’ll finally win again at home on Saturday,” Robert Pessentheiner remains optimistic.
Regional league middle: Peter Madritsch, coach of the Union Gurten, who clinched their fourth win in their fourth game in the second half of the season, also has every reason to be confident. It could go on like this, “but we’re not naive and know about the quality of Vöcklamarkt. That’s why we have to throw in everything we have to keep the points in Gurten,” says Madritsch. When asked why things are going so smoothly at the moment, the coach has a clear answer: “The development steps we have taken are now having an effect. We also tried out a lot of new things during the preparations, which are now working quite well. The direction is right , but we still have to be realistic. We didn’t win a league, just a few games,” said the 47-year-old.
Due to illness and minor injuries, Peter Madritsch cannot draw from the full against Vöcklamarkt on Friday (kick-off is at 6.30 p.m.), but he definitely wants to continue the successful run. He doesn’t want to and won’t rely on statistics (Gurten leads the home and second half table, among other things). “I very much hope that the fans will whip us forward, but we have to perform. And we will,” says Madritsch.
The Junge Vikings, who got at least one point after a poor start to the second half of the season against St. Anna, should also deliver at the weekend – thanks to a goal by Severin Hingsamer in added time. It is questionable whether they will be able to do something similar on Friday, because WSC Hertha is a strong opponent in Ried. But even that can be “bent”. The Junge Vikings showed that in the 2-1 away win against Hertha in autumn 2020. The last meeting in August 2021 ended in a goalless draw.
Source: Nachrichten
