FOURTH SUCCESSIVE HOME WIN THE TARGET IN "1910 HOME GAME"
Friday, 18. October 2019, 15:35 Uhr
FC St. Pauli return to league action on Saturday when they entertain SV Darmstadt 98 at the Millerntor (kick-off: 1300 CET). The Boys in Brown go into the game looking to extend their six-game unbeaten run against a side who haven't won in seven.
Most of us have a date that means something special to us, be it a birthday, a wedding anniversary or a child's christening, for example, and the same applies to FC St. Pauli. One such date is 15 May 1910, the day the club was founded. Another is 3 September 1977, when we celebrated our victory over our cross-city rivals since the establishment of the two Bundesligas. Other dates of note include 16 February 2011, the day on which we picked up our first derby win after a 33-year drought, and 6 February 2001, of course, when the Boys in Brown defeated reigning club world champions Bayern Munich 2-1. But have there been any special games on the 19th day of October (19.10). Well, yes there have, but you have to go all the way back to 1930 to find one. And what a day it was – the first derby win in the club's history (1-0 away from home).
We haven't played all that often on a 19.10. in the last 50 years to be fair. In fact, there have only been seven competitive fixtures on this date, three at home and four away. Some may remember the game at FC Augsburg on 19 October 2008, when the Boys in Brown looked to be on their way to their first away point that season until the home side struck in time added on to secure a 3‑2 win. The other three away games also ended in defeat – 2-1 at Sachsen Leipzig in 2003, 1-0 at. FC Nürnberg in 1997 and 5-2 at SSV Ulm in the DFB Cup in 1985.
It's a different story as far as home games on a 19 October are concerned, however. Fifty years ago to the day, the Boys in Brown beat Arminia Hannover 2-1. In 1990, they conceded late on to draw 3-3 with VfL Bochum, while in 1996 the game ended in a 2-0 victory over SC Freiburg.
Current assistant coach André Trulsen was on the field that day, by the way. Twenty-three years later, Trulsen will be looking on from the dugout as the Boys in Brown attempt to extend their unbeaten run to seven matches against Darmstadt. The signs are good, as Luhukay's have won their last three games at the Millerntor (2-1 against Kiel, 2-0 against HSV and 2-0 against Sandhausen).
The last time the Boys in Brown won four in a row at home was towards the end of the 2014/15 season. Darmstadt, of course, will be doing their utmost to prevent a repeat on Saturday by taking all three points themselves, something they last achieved 11 weeks ago when they saw off the challenge of Kiel to secure their only win of the season to date. While the Lilies haven't lost at home since Dimitrios Grammozis took charge in late February (four wins, five draws), they haven't won away from home in almost six months since the 2-1 success at eventual champions FC Cologne towards the end of April.
So while Darmstadt will be looking to go home with a win for the first time this season on Saturday, the Boys in Brown have the chance to secure their fourth home win in a row, something they last managed more than four years ago. Whether it will go down in the club's history, however, remains to be seen.
Photos: Witters