The boys watched this game from the comfort of Zoes Bar. An important darts game against the Butchers Apron & Mable Albion, prevented them from travelling. 3pts in the football, I'm afraid, humiliation in the darts.
Karlsruhe SC 0 St. Pauli 2
St. Pauli have reclaimed second place in the Bundesliga 2 after a relatively comfortable 2-0 win against a Karlsruhe SC side in a downward spiral, which sees them move level on points with table toppers Greuther Fürth.
Despite a bright start from the hosts a phenomenal Florian Bruns free-kick broke the deadlock (17') before Marius Ebbers made sure of the win within 17 seconds of the second half beginning (46'). Karlsruhe probed throughout the 90 minutes, but couldn't penetrate a resilient Pauli defence as they fell to their fifth loss in a row.
A half of missed chances
On the back of four consecutive losses that had left them perilously close to the drop zone Kalrsruhe SC were determined to grab an early goal and less than a minute in had already hit the post. St. Pauli were caught napping at the back when a poor defensive header allowed Delron Buckley to burst into the box and an unconvincing Philipp Tschauner got just enough on the ball to deflect the effort onto the post. Pauli responded by going close at the other end, but Kevin Schindler dragged his shot wide of the far stick.
The Hamburg outfit gradually began to take control of possession as they stifled Karlsruhe's lively start to the match and quarter of an hour in they took the lead, albeit slightly against the run of play. Picking up a free-kick just outside the box the ball was laid off to Florian Bruns whose unstoppable shot curled around the wall and into the top corner (17'). Pauli had found their stride, but moments later Fin Bartels failed to put the finishing touches on a free-flowing move.
Karlsruhe can't believe their misfortune
The midfield battle heated up around the half hour mark as Karlsruhe tried to bully their way back into the match, but their best chances came courtesy of the counter attack. Fresh off the bench for the injured Thorben Stadler, Klemen Lavric found himself unmarked at the back post, but completely mistimed his header squandering a good chance for the equalizer.
Just before half time and Karlsruhe couldn't believe they hadn't scored. Bogdan Müller broke down the right and when Lasse Sobiech flicked the ball onto his own bar, Louis N'Gwat Mahop failed to get the crucial touch a few yards out from goal in amongst the mass confusion. Pauli had to hold on at the end, but took a one-goal lead in at the break.
Game over in 17 seconds
Any hope Karlsruhe had of finding an early equalizer was well and truly squashed within 17 seconds of the restart. Pauli won the ball straight from the kick-off allowing Schindler to release Ebbers and the big striker managed to slip the ball in between Dirk Orlishausen's legs from a tight angle to extend the visitors lead (46'). The goal was a sucker punch to Karlsruhe's chances, but they weren't about to give up. Müller, their most lively player throughout the 90 minutes, had several shots from distance fly off target, but did force the odd save out of Tschauner.
Desperation began creeping into Karlsruhe's style of play, but St. Pauli never lost control of the match. Ebbers had another good chance blocked by Orlishausen before seeing his header from the resulting corner clip the crossbar, while Lavric forced a fairly routine save out of Tschauner down the other end. Karlsruhe were still pressing forward, but Pauli kept their concentration at the back to limit the hosts to shots from distance.
Max Kruse went close twice late on, but the score line remained unchanged as St. Pauli added another three points to their season total to keep their good start to the season alive.
James Thorogood
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