“Suck it up, men! “Suck it up!” Marcel Schuhen shouted at his teammates after the final whistle. There they were, lined up in front of the guest block, raising their arms together with over 2,000 Lilien fans who had traveled with them. “Suck it up!” What he meant by that: Channel those emotions after the final whistle. The feeling of victory. Take the joy of one of the most spectacular away three points and the boost of this incredible comeback with you into the new working week.
After 38 minutes, it certainly didn’t look like the Lilies could have celebrated anything after the final whistle. Ron Schallenberg had just scored Schalke’s third goal. “Of course, after the third goal, you briefly think that everything is going in the wrong direction,” Marcel Schuhen admitted honestly. Florian Kohfeldt also assessed the situation in a similar way after this significant deficit: “Normally you can’t come back after a first half like that. Normally you can’t win a game like that after 3-0.”
You should never give up believing something!
But: “We did it today,” said the SV 98 head coach happily. Because the Lilies showed an outstanding mentality and incredible morale. Because despite these blows in the neck, they became more and more courageous in the first half of the game and got back into the game thanks to Fraser Hornby’s penalty. The number 9 of the SVD? A good example of courage anyway: He played a crucial bad pass before the score was 0-1, but then he grabbed the ball in front of Schalke’s north curve and converted confidently and ice-coldly from the spot. A hit that made people believe. “You should never give up believing in something. It suits us very well today,” summarised Schuhen in his statement after the final whistle. The story of the game: 0:3 became 5:3 – thanks to goals from Hornby, a hat-trick from Isac Lidberg and the final goal from Sergio Lopez. A spectacular and celebrated away win for the Lilies that “feels incredibly good,” as Lidberg made clear.
…that the Lilies didn’t show what they had planned in the first half, especially defensively. In addition, FC Schalke 04 could have put the lid on the game with two top-class chances after the restart, which Schuhen was able to prevent with two strong saves. “Especially against the ball, what we played before the break doesn’t work at all,” said Kohfeldt angrily. At halftime, the head coach, who had only been in office for a good two weeks, made crucial changes. “He made a very small change during the break, but it was huge,” revealed Schuhen and added: “We had incredible power on the pitch after the break, everyone wanted to have the ball. A special body language has emerged. That was exceptionally good.” In any case, Kohfeldt works every day to instill his game idea in the team, which they are now getting better at implementing. Of course, experiences of success help. “You believe in ideas when they are successful,” says Schuhen. And the head coach’s ideas were successful on Friday evening.
The first win in the league, a very special one at that. How much confidence and boost can these three points give the team? Florian Kohfeldt was asked this at the press conference in the catacombs of the Veltins Arena. “Of course, this game can certainly give us a big boost,” emphasised the head coach of SV 98, but at the same time made it clear: “But we can’t rely on it.” After all, it was only one game, and in the end only the first three points for the current season.
There is still a lot of work ahead of the Darmstadt team, who will host 1. FC Magdeburg in the Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor next Saturday afternoon (September 28th/1pm). “We need to use the boost sooner to continue working on our content,” said Kohfeldt, who specifically meant football-tactical as well as mental and athletic content. Only in the Magdeburg game will we see how much of Schalke’s emotions the team absorbed and channeled, and how much they were able to use the boost from Gelsenkirchen to work on their content in training.
On Sunday (Oct 18th), SV Darmstadt 98 will visit Karlsruher SC. The side from Baden differs from the Lilies in several key respects. Furthermore, the match will see SV 98 cross paths with a former player once again. Find out here about other connections between the two clubs, as well as some particularly interesting statistics ahead of the encounter.
On Tuesday evening (October 13th), the SilberLilien took part in SV Darmstadt 98’s Stolperstein tour for the first time. Along the approximately six-kilometre route, the participants made several stops to learn more about the fates of Jewish club members who were persecuted and driven out during the Holocaust.
From new grassroots sports offerings and a look back at the club's history to birthdays and the latest updates from the media briefing—there is plenty to report from SV Darmstadt 98 again this week. In "Lilien Across the Board," we round up the news, insights, and stories from life at the club.
Tickets for the home match against 1. FC Heidenheim on November 22nd are available for purchase now.
SV Darmstadt 98's U21 team proved their mettle at home against KSV Hessen Kassel II in the Hessenliga on Sunday (Oct. 11th). After a convincing 90-minute performance, the Young Lilies secured another three points, finishing with a decisive 4–0 victory that lifts them to sixth place in the standings.
The Lilies overturned an early deficit to celebrate a 3–1 home victory against Energie Cottbus—a win that boosts confidence and confirms the progress being made. Read our analysis to find out why there is still work to be done and what positives SV 98 takes away from the match.
This season, too, Lilien fans will be doubly rewarded for every home goal scored by SV Darmstadt 98. In addition to the joy and excitement of the goals, the team's supporters will receive 98 litres of Krombacher Pils for every home goal scored by Darmstadt at the Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor.
After the international break, Darmstadt 98 returned to the Bölle with a home win! Against Energie Cottbus, SV Darmstadt 98 put on a spirited performance in front of their home crowd and rewarded themselves with three points after an intense match. We've compiled the post-match reactions for you here:
Despite falling behind, Darmstadt secured their second consecutive home win! Darmstadt defeated Energie Cottbus 3-1 (1-1). The home side equalised after conceding an early goal in the four-minute period through Weißhaupt before halftime. Vukotic headed his team into the lead in the second half, before Lührs sealed the victory with the third goal. This home win brings Darmstadt's season total to seven points.
Homegame at Böllenfalltor (10/10, 1pm): Florian Kohfeldt has made two changes to his starting XI compared to the away match in Wolfsburg three weeks ago. Richter and Mikelbrencis come into the starting lineup for Sickinger (calf issues) and Lannert (illness).
On Saturday afternoon (October 10th, 1pm), SV 98 hosts Energie Cottbus at the Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor for Matchday 7. What do the two head coaches have to say ahead of kick-off? Who is officiating the match, and where can you follow the action live? As always, we have compiled all the key information regarding the game against Cottbus in our "Matchday Guide" feature.
