In 2019, SV Gmunden suffered the bitter relegation from the Upper Austrian League – five years later, the club from the Salzkammergut is back in the highest league in the state. And how: The blue and whites stormed to the title at record speed last season – becoming the first team in the lower house of football to be crowned champions of the Landesliga West just seven rounds before the end of the season.
The leader did not give up its dominance in the finish either: Gmunden only had to leave the field as a loser once last season. They came first in all statistics: best home and away team, best offense (90 goals), best defense (16 goals conceded) and fairest team – it was an outstanding year.
“Like a fairytail”
“The team is extremely hungry and did not let themselves be stopped even after the title was secured,” says Gmunden’s championship coach Christoph Brummayer, for whom it became particularly emotional after the title was won: The 45-year-old, who joined the club as assistant coach at the end of 2022, won the most important match of his life years ago: In 2017, he was diagnosed with testicular cancer and fought for his life for over two years. “I was in hospital for seven months and didn’t know if I would ever get back on the pitch as a coach. The title is like a fairy tale come true.”
After the season, Brummayer is taking a new path: he is handing over his role as master coach to his long-time companion Markus Waldl and is taking over the position of sports director in Gmunden: “The daily routine of a coach is very intense, I’m tired. But I definitely wanted to stay because the club has grown on me.”
Top player leaves
Champion He will have to restructure the team a little for the Upper Austrian League: Dragan Calic is unavailable due to a world trip, difference player Florian Spitze (15 goals) is joining the regional league team Andorf. The newcomers Jonas Broser (Mondsee), Erol Zümrüt and Patrick Plojer (both SPG Wels) are already confirmed.
He brought SV Gmunden back on track
SV Gmunden’s return to the Upper Austrian League is no flash in the pan: Back in 2019, when the club had to face the bitter relegation to the regional league, there was already a precise vision: “We wanted to get promoted again in five years,” says club boss Gerhard Riedl. In 2017, he took over the presidency of the traditional club from the Salzkammergut – it took a few steps to get the club back on track. “When I took over, the club was in massive trouble. A lot was necessary to get the cart back on track.”
Riedl initiated a restructuring process – SV Gmunden now has a broad team of officials and is again in a positive position in the surrounding area. Riedl wants to get going not only with Gmunden in the state’s highest league from the summer, but also with his data platform “Riespo”. This is intended to make scouting in the youth sector easier and to be a useful tool for players, coaches and clubs.
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Source: Nachrichten
