FC St. Pauli

Head coach Fabian Hürzeler named an unchanged side for the visit of Hansa Rostock after the 2-1 win at Hannover 96 last time out. Once again he had to manage without several members of his squad, among them central defender Eric Smith and full-backs Philipp Treu and Lars Ritzka. Hansa coach Mersad Selimbegović responded to the poor showing in the 2-0 home defeat at the hands of Magdeburg by making six adjustments to his starting XI.

Well before the kick-off it was clear that this was no ordinary contest. With so much at stake in this traditionally explosive fixture, the atmosphere inside the ground was simply electric. The Boys in Brown were chasing the win that would ensure they finish the season no worse than third, while Rostock were desperate for points in the battle against relegation. In perfect football weather both teams made a high-intensity start, though there was very little flow to the game. The opening chance fell to the visitors from their first corner in the seventh minute, but the distance effort from Sebastian Vasiliadis flashed a good metre over the crossbar.

In the opening stages the Hürzeler XI struggled to get going against Hansa's high press and aggressive tackling. The visitors continued to probe and from another corner the unmarked Vasiliadis tested Nikola Vasilj with a powerful header that the keeper defused with aplomb. Five minutes later Juan-José Perea escaped the attentions of the home defence on the left-hand side but on arriving in the box he was denied by Vasilj, who was soon called into action again to deal with an undercooked effort from Nils Fröling. As the half wore on, the pattern remained the same – the Boys in Brown dominated the possession but were unable to do anything with it, while Rostock continued to fashion the better chances.

With just under half an hour gone Marcel Hartel tried his luck from a long way out following a free-kick he had taken himself, but dragged his effort well off target. At the other end, Rostock almost went ahead when Fröling slotted a pass through to Perea, whose angled drive was heading for the far corner until Vasilj got down low to turn it round the post for a corner – an excellent stop! The Boys in Brown then had their own opportunity to take the lead four minutes before the break, Johannes Eggestein latching onto to a long upfield clearance from his own box by Connor Metcalfe. The striker bore down on Rostock keeper Markus Kolke, only to be thwarted by a last-minute lunge from Jonas David. There was just time for Perea to have another attempt saved by Vasilj before the referee blew for half-time.

Johannes Eggestein is denied by a last-ditch tackle from Jonas David in the 41st minute.

Both teams emerged unchanged for the second half and it was the Hürzeler XI who registered the first decent chance two minutes in when Aljoscha Kemlein directed a diving header just wide of the right-hand post from an Oladapo Afolayan cross. Rostock stuck with their early pressing strategy, but the Boys in Brown were able to escape their attentions more often than in the first half and play their way into the Rostock box. On one occasion all that was needed to do that was a long punt forward by Vasilj to Irvine, who headed on for Kemlein. The midfielder attempted to dink the ball over Kolke, who unfortunately saw it coming and made the save. There was nothing the keeper could do from the resulting corner, however. Hartel picked out the advancing Irvine on the edge of the goal area and he found the far corner with a glancing header to break the deadlock.

Rostock continued to resist with lots of tackles, but the Boys in Brown began to win more and more of them and thus dominated the possession to such an extent that the visitors rarely got anywhere near the FCSP penalty area. It therefore came as no surprise when Selimbegović responded with the introduction of Kai Pröger and Christian Kinsombi. The double switch made little difference, however, as the Hürzeler XI continued to dictate the proceedings without creating any further chances of note.

Though there was little penalty box action for the 29,163 spectators to admire, it remained a gripping contest because there was no drop-off in intensity and the tackles continued to fly in. A second goal would have made for a more relaxed evening and the Boys in Brown looked the more likely side to score. Rostock went all in with another double substitution, while Hürzeler sent on Adam Dźwigała for Connor Metcalfe.

Buoyed by the raucous backing of the home fans, the Hürzeler XI saw the game out to secured a deserved victory on the back of an improved second-half performance and Jackson Irvine's all-important strike. The three points mean that the Boys in Brown can finish no worse than third and will end the campaign in front of crosstown rivals HSV.

FC St. Pauli

Vasilj - Nemeth, Wahl, Mets - Saliakas, Irvine, Kemlein, Metcalfe (Dźwigała 84') - Afolayan (Amenyido 87'), Eggestein (Boukhalfa 90'+2), Hartel

Head coach: Fabian Hürzeler

Hansa Rostock

Kolke - Rossipal, David, van der Werff (Stafylidis 75') - Strauss, Vasiliadis (Kinsombi 70'), Bachmann, Dressel (Singh 84'), Ingelsson - Fröling (Pröger 70'), Perea (Guðjohnsen 84')

Head coach: Mersad Selimbegović

Goal: 1-0 Irvine (52')

Yellow cards: Perea, Ingelsson, Strauss, Stafylidis

Referee: Robert Hartmann (Wangen)

Attendance: 29,163 (sold out)

Photos: FC St. Pauli/Witters