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| The Big Match (as advertised in town) |
While the cat’s away…my better half is in Hong Kong with work, giving me an opportunity to have a cheeky German trip (or 2!) and where better than Bundesliga mainstays Werder Bremen? Especially since it was only £15 to fly out there Friday nite from Stansted (£18 to get to Stansted, mind!)
After spending Sat morn sightseeing around Bremen, I hopped on a tram (line 3) direct to the stadium. For once, I wasn’t faredodging either, as I already had my match ticket, ordered in advance and posted out to me in England (€5). So, a stress-free enterprise allowing me to spend a contented pre-match, wandering around, taking pics.
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| The Weserstadion. |
The Weserstadion has one unique feature – it’s floodlights. Together with its dotted plexiglass ‘cape’, the stadium looks quite grand from outside. Inside though, it’s a bit dated. There’s exec boxes jutting into the paddock (a la Everton) while the upper tier, which curves around behind the goal to where the away fans are, is higher on the west stand upper than it is in the north west corner. No wonder there were so many spare tickets here when I booked. The higher upper tier to our right means a restricted view in this area. Even though I was in the front row of the North-west corner, I could only just see the near goal. And no-one sat to my right despite it being a virtual full house. Oh, and the concourses are narrow and the toilets are a nightmare, no space to move.
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| Those floodlights. |
Yet, still, my main annoyance is the ‘Werder cards’ you have t buy and oad up with cash to buy anything. For an occasional (only?) visitor, howthehell do I know how much I’ll spend? ‘I’ll have 7 euros 80 on there, please.’ No thanks. I wonder what it’s like in the away end? I presume THEY don’t have to buy these cards. I couldn’t even get a beer at one of the stalls OUTSIDE the stadium. (I only wanted the plastic glass with a picture of the stadium on it). Their loss.
However, there’s any amount of entrepreneurial-types willing to sell you a beer from their shopping trolley full of them. And why not? The stadium is also walkable from town (follow the tram tracks…or the river!) and you pass any amount of bars en route. Or there’s 2 or 3 pubs at the ‘Weserstadion’ tram stop. So no need to go short.
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| Ticket booths suitably greened up. |
The match? An entertaining draw, low on quality, high on goals (2-2). Werder went ahead in the 1st half when a header back across goal was hooked in past a wrong-footed keeper and defender. Against the run of play, I thought. And being next to the incessant racket of the Darmstadt support (though I couldn’t really see them, being higher up) I began pulling for them. They got their just desserts before half-time when their centre forward ran through, rounded the keeper…and was hauled down. As stonewall a penalty and red card as you’re likely to see…so the ref gave a yellow. All I can think was that there was a defender running back to the line…but it was STILL a ‘goalscoring opportunity’. Oh well. Coolly despatched, one-all.
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| One hell of a sweetshop under the stand. |
Anyway, the second half was littered with mistakes and yet few goalscoring opportunities. Then, the Darmstadt captain, Sulu, decided to envlien proceedings by mistiming a tackle and taking such a swipe he hurt himself AND their player. Or was he play-acting to avoid a red card? Relieved to be only given a yellow, he only then goes and scores. A hopeful free kick is chipped straight down the middle and Sulu flicked it in, with only another Darmstadter for company. The Werder defence had simply gone AWOL.
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| Inside stadium panorama. |
Queue wild scenes above us as various away fans jump onto the fence to remind us who’s winning. One particularly unedifying spectacle has a fan grabbing his crotch repeatedly, in a manner not seen since Michael Jackson in the 80s (whatever happened to him?) All this while hanging off a fence. Mind, even Wacko never pointed at people while motioning that he would cut their throats. Most unsavoury. Another Darmstadt fan made the same throat-cutting motion. Is this what stands for ‘celebration’ down their way? Werder fans responded by throwing their plastic beer glasses…into the dividing net.
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| The Darmstadt fans. (Luckily, I could see the goal if I leant to one side.) |
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| I wouldn't mind, but the guy next to me was mainly asleep (drunk). |
Afterards I went back to one of those pubs at the Weserstadion stop. I wish I could remember its name, cos it was tremendous. Bundesliga highlights on telly and weissbier (Franziskaner) on tap, as well as typical German fayre (bratwurst). After depriving myself pre-match, I really enjoyed those beers, before walking back to town for ‘proper’ food. I stopped at a respectable looking place (‘Café Engel’) for a Maissel’s Weiss, later finding it was one of the places recommended in the guide book. But I didn’t stay for food; I had my eyes on a trip to the Rathaus and some local concoction, a version of haggis, played out to the sound of raucous Essex women of a certain age (my age) echoing around the vaulted ceiling. Ahhh, those cheap flights from Stansted…
The Damage: €30 (+€5 postage) €1.50
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| The teams come out. The scarves come out. |
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| Hedging his bets... |
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| Pre-match. |
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| Smart additions to the stand. |
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| I spy a team coach! |
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| Pre-match inside the stadium. |
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| Lower tier packed out. |
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| The teams line up. |
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| Pre-match watering. |
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| That 'cape' in full. |
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| What a view. |
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| Werder celebrate going 1-0 up. |
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| Pre-match panorama. |
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| Exec boxes. |
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| My entry point. |
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| Keep them away fans caged! |
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| Dortmund woz ere. |
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| Sunset over Weserstadion. |
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