Marathon Man | DKMS campaign on match day

Half marathon. Marathon. Triathlon. But actually a professional footballer? “I’m a bit crazy when it comes to that,” laughs Marco Thiede. “I enjoy voluntary running, I don’t have any motivation problems,” the right-back continued, even though he had to put up with one or two comments about his running activities from his former teammates. Thiede made the most of the time without a club in the summer to keep himself fit. He is now under contract at Böllenfalltor and can once again devote himself to his greatest passion – playing football. The task of playing for a traditional club like SV 98 really appealed to the right-back, which is why he didn’t have to think twice about signing the contract with the Lilies. The newcomer wants to ensure more stability with his new employer – whether on or off the pitch. “I think I have a good feel for what a team needs. And I would like to help her with my experience,” explains Thiede.

Marco Thiede has special memories of 1. FC Köln. Back then – in 2013 – the now 32-year-old played one of his first second division games with SV Sandhausen against Cologne. Next Friday (10.18/6:30pm) there will be another meeting with the Billy Goats from the cathedral city. Thiede is confident. “If we deliver our performances, we will beat Köln at the weekend,” said the newcomer in a media round on Tuesday (October 14th). But the right-back also knows about the strengths of “Effzeh”, which has the best offensive in the league with 20 goals this season. “They can be very dangerous, especially going forward. A stronger opponent is coming towards us,” warns Thiede.

Every 12 minutes in Germany a person is diagnosed with blood cancer, and worldwide every 27 seconds. Many patients cannot survive without a life-saving stem cell donation. And the search for a suitable donor often begins a race against time. A stem cell donation can save lives! For this reason, Merck is launching the DKMS campaign on Friday (October 18th) to identify possible stem cell donors. This will happen at the home game against 1. FC Köln (10.18/6:30pm). Behind the south stand from 4:30pm, all Lilien fans can register as a donor free of charge and thus actively help people. If you are already registered, it is possible to support the campaign in other ways with a small donation. Come along and save lives!

Six-point weekend for the Lilies. In addition to the U21 of SV Darmstadt 98, which won 3-1 against Hanauer SC, the fan team also achieved another success. Offensively, the “zwote Zwote” showed their particularly strong side against their district league rival RSV Germania Pfungstadt II, against whom a spectacular game developed. Eight goals were scored in the first half alone and the Darmstadt team went into the locker room with a 5-3 lead. Ultimately, the Lilies celebrated a 6-3 victory. A big challenge awaits the South Hesse team next weekend: Then they have to play away against SKG Roßdorf II, second in the table. The game will be played on Sunday (October 20th/1pm) on the grass field at Theodor-Clausen-Straße 54 in Roßdorf. Good luck, guys!

He has been lacing up his football boots for SV Darmstadt 98 since 2020. He made his debut in the 1st Bundesliga last season. And in the Lilies‘ U21 team, he is one of the mainstays this season. Asaf Arania. In the Hessenliga he has played 14 out of 15 games so far. The native Israeli will celebrate his 19th birthday next Saturday (October 19th). We wish you all the best and only the best for the future, Asaf!

Birthday party on Saturday? Arania is not alone on this day. A former goalscorer for SV Darmstadt 98 can also look forward to his special day. Serdar Dursun celebrates his 33rd birthday. The striker is currently active in Turkey for Alanyaspor. In Darmstadt, the German-Turk played 107 competitive games and scored 59 goals and is still in third place in the list of Darmstadt’s all-time record scorers – only Peter Cestonaro (93) and Uwe Kuhl (75) scored more often in the Lilies jersey. We wish you a happy birthday too, Serdar!