Fair Weather Fans of Football ALLEZ!

Well I guess I owe most of our regular readers a bit of an apology..... 5 matches and not a word from me, which is ok if you are living in Germany or "speaking ze Doitsch" but a bummer if you are trying to follow the Party Army from a far off land where the idea of learning German seems about as sensible as betting on Man City winning the premiership. So sorry that the only source of purple white information for the English speaking world was offline but well we couldnt be arsed.... Those who want to gradually learn the results please skip the next inch of blog entry.

Babelsberg, Wank, Wank, Wank! Resignation

So after the depressing Eberswalder and BFC Dynamo matches I will start with the positive.... our home match against the top of the table dwarfs of Babel from the outskirts of Potsdam: A village outside a village. Babelsberg were one of my and Belfasters faves for this season after their impressive position last season. Hardly rocket science that to guess that a team that came above us last season might be favourites to come above us this season but this logic was obviously seen as flawed by some of the football minds in the board room, or more likely in the Casino bar. But TeBe beat Babelsberg 3-1 away earlier in the season and although the idea of promotion had just become a matter of numerical possibilities for us by then, well it would have been good to spank them twice in the year.... and I wasnt disappointed:

23. Matchday | Fr, 13.04.2007 | 7.30 PM | Mommsenstadion

Tennis Borussia - SV Babelsberg 03
1:0 (1:0)

Line-up: Hampf - Schalle, Below, Konal - Griesert, Camara (63. Scholl), Kurbjuweit (72. Yilmaz), Petrowsky, Galic - Fuß (87. Kalkan), Savran.
Referee: Gerber (Chemnitz).
Goals: 1:0 (28.) Galic.
Fans: 1489.
Bookings: Below, Fuß, Savran - Moritz, Zenk, Prochnow.

So I guess this was the point where i felt that my pride as a TeBe Fan had been saved. Babelsberg are going up but TeBe would be the only team that could beat them twice this season and certainly one of the few teams to beat them at all.

It was now time to assess the failures, watch the heads roll and see what can be saved for the next season and where the team and management needs to rip it all out and start from scratch. With nobody in charge it was time for someone to take over, jumping in at the helm of this great club before its too late.... I dont know any of the candidates, dont understand such complicated stuff in Germany but as a member of the club this is one general meeting that i will go to and cast my vote... i cant wait. But the other matches.... well they are a different story.

So in no particular order as I dont really remember the order.

21. Matchday | Mo, 09.04.2007 | 2.00pm | Mommsenstadion
Tennis Borussia - Ludwigsfelder FC
TeBe 0:0 Ludwigsfelder FC
Team: Hampf - Konal, Below, Galic - Kurbjuweit, Scholl (46. Camara), Lemcke (66. Yilmaz), Petrowsky, Griesert - Savran, Fuß.
Referee: Oehme (Witzschdorf).
Fans: 381.
Bookings: Galic - Klatt, Haß.

This was a really dismal affair just a few days before the Babelsberg match and TeBe rarely looked dangerous, never seemed to play as a team and this seemed at the time to be the most boring that football can get... well at the time at least. Then came the match after Babelsberg....

24. Spieltag | So, 22.04.2007 | 14.00 Uhr | Jahnstadion
FC Schönberg 95 - Tennis Borussia
FC Schönberg 95 0:2 TeBe
Team: Hampf – Konal (76. Filiz), Below, Galic – Kurbjuweit (69. Karadag), Scholl, Yilmaz (60. Kalkon), Petrowsky, Griesert – Savran, Fuß.
Referee: Gunnar Melms (Osterburg).
Goals: 1:0 (12.) Ören, 2:0 (15.) Malchow, 3:0 (49.) Malchow.
Fans: 293.
Bookings: None

So now the Doughnut Boy is moaning about a win you think... but read that goals section again and yes TeBe actually lost this match 3-0, an absolutely dismal performance. Fans who travelled 3 hours there and 3 back were so annoyed afterwards that some (admittedly seemingly a bit drunk) went and confronted the team afterwards by sitting in front of their bus.

To be honest I didnt know who i would blame: The team did us proud against Babelsberg but with a few injuries, low morale, irrelevent matches, still no consistent squad and probably little or no pay what do I really expect? Still no word on any new management so who is meant to deal with contracts and the like anyways. For the next game some of the fans decided to take board games and sports equipment and play in Block E themselves under a "100%" motto. Not being at the match before I found it all a bit over the top and watched the match talking to a groundhopper from London - sadly a West Ham fan but a good man for a story or three. The performance was better though:

25. Matchday | Fr, 27.04.2007 | 7.30 pm | Mommsenstadion
Tennis Borussia - TSG Neustrelitz
TeBe 2:0 (1:0) TSG Neustrelitz

Team: Hampf - Schalle, Below, Galic - Kurbjuweit (76. Karadag), Scholl (61. Camara), Lemcke, Petrowsky, Griesert - Fuß, Savran.
Referee: Hartig (Freital).
Goals: 1:0 (38.) Savran, 2:0 (53.) Savran.
Fan: 273.
Bookings: Petrowsky

Not a bad performance really but then came last week and the match against BAK.

26. Matchday | Su, 06.05.2007 | 2.00 pm | Jahn-Sportpark
Berlin Ankaraspor - Tennis Borussia
Berlin Ankaraspor 5:2 (2:1) TeBe

Team: Hampf - Eckl (Kalkan) - Scholl - Schalle - Lemcke - Griesert - Petrowsky - Kurbjuweit (Camara) - Karadag (Yilmaz)- Fuß - Savran
Referee: Marco Schramm
Goals: 0:1 Fuß (7.), 1:1 Türkkan (13.), 2:1 Diop (46.), 3:1 Türkkan (53.), 4:1 Türkkan ( 67.), 5:1 Selimi (70.), 5:2 Yilmaz (76.)
Fans: 148
Bookings: Yilmaz

This wasnt a game - this was a massacre. BAK could have scored ten but Timo made some blinding saves. The defence just didnt work and after the bite of the first 10 minutes the attack started to miss and might as well not have played the 2nd half. The midfield couldnt string two passes together and rarely even managed 1.

So TeBe currently have:

1. No management and the GM isnt for another month.
2. They badly need to sort out their squad.
3. Sorry Dejan but its time for a new coach.
4. They need perspective....
5. And a f**king miracle.

With a month until a new management can even be appointed it doesnt look good for securing new players or keeping current players on contracts because the summer break will be well upon us by the time the management situation is sorted. Basically we are in trouble and among a lot of fans there is a gradual "just dont give a shit" depression hanging over our heads.
"So why the pictures of Paris Hilton?" I hear you ask.
Well to be honest i dont really know who she is BUT I read yesterday that she is appealing against going to prison for drink driving by claiming that:

She provides beauty and excitement to (most of) our otherwise mundane lives.

That was the role that TeBe played in my life but the recent performances (apart from Babelsberg) dont deserve any photos and certainly havent provided any beauty or excitement into my very mundane life. So Party Army readers can have Paris instead and feel free to sign her fan petition HERE. Its cheaper, more amusing and certainly brings more to your mundane lives to sign a petition than go to the Mommse in these dark days for purple and white football.