By the skin of their teeth, but ultimately successful: The U23 team of Ahrweiler BC has mastered their first competitive match of the new season. Ricardo Ribeiro and Tobias Roth's team prevailed 3-1 (1-1) against B-League team TuS Mayen II and have advanced to the next cup round – thanks in part to two late goals.
Not much went right for the district capital dwellers from the Ahrtal in the first half. Although the difference in class was nominally significant, it was barely noticeable on the Mayen turf. The host team, appearing committed, showed the necessary will that ABC initially lacked. Consequently, Florian Roßbach (37th minute) put TuS in the lead after Nils Lenerz had provided a textbook assist.
Just before the halftime whistle, ABC equalized with a bit of luck: a deflected shot from Michel Wagneder found the hosts' net, unstoppable (45.+5). The icebreaker.
Only after the change of sides did the Ribeiro eleven show the necessary presence, focus on the essentials, and act more cohesively. Mayen remained a tough opponent, but the game gradually tipped in favor of the favorite. As much pointed towards overtime, Chadi Atwi took heart and scored a spectacular goal from a distance into the right corner of the goal (88th minute). In stoppage time, Maximilian Bluhm (90th + 3rd minute) sealed the victory with a counter-attack led by Aron Seck.
"A typical cup game. Difficult, tough, and hard-fought. But we're through – that's what counts," Ribeiro concluded matter-of-factly.
On Saturday, the U23 team will host DJK Plaidt for the league opener (5:30 PM, Mittelplatz Bad Neuenahr). We wish Mayen II an injury-free and successful season.
TuS Mayen II vs Ahrweiler BC U23 1:3 (1:1)
Goals: 1:0 (37') Florian Roßbach, 1:1 (45'+5) Michel Wagneder, 1:2 (88') Chadi Atwi, 1:3 Maximilian Bluhm (90'+3)
Lineup:
Philip Schmidtgen, Muris Susa, Yannik Kunze (40’ Finn Götte), Joel Ley (53’ Ibrahim Sleei), Luca Galdino, Bartek Metza, Elvedin Hamza (53’ Danny Werner), Max Bluhm, Michel Wageneder (90’ Faruk Tunc), Chadi Atwi (90’ Lukas Adeneuer), and Aron Seck