St Gallen

[Bartok]

There is a bonny fitba team... in St Gallen, Switzerland 8) This thread is for contacts with our Swiss brothers on all subjects.

Here's the link to the fans' site: http://fcsg.foros.de/

 

[Vlado]

Originally posted by "Bartok"

Nice to see you guys are back again

FCSG lost at Aarau 1-0 on Saturday, the goal was scored by Aarau's keeper !!!

Hi Vlado, how did that happen then?

I guess I'll continue in here...

Well, Aarau's keeper kicked the ball (at the line of the box, from his hands) and it got longer and longer (there was a pretty strong wind from behind), bounced off close to our box and lobbed our keeper, who seemed pretty surprised by the height the ball bounced off. BTW such a goal has been scored about ten years ago, too, at the same place into the same goal, but then it was FC Aarau that conceived it...

Our next match is away at Delmont next Sunday, if we don't win that, things will look pretty bad...

 

[Bartok]

Sounds just like Andy Goram's goal, he was one of our better keepers a few years back, won a lot of caps.

"I can understand why Stranraer lie so lowly,
They could save a lot of points by signing Hibs' goalie"

That was him!

 

[Vlado]

I guess these goals just happen from time to time...

Things look brighter again for FCSG after an away win at Delmont today. This 4-1 should bring back some self confidence to the team and especially to striker Merenda, who hadn't scored for the previous 7 matches and finally managed to net the ball again. You could actually see the relief in his face as he ran towards the supporters to celebrate his goal. Kudos go to the whole team for shaking hands with the sups after the match, a nice gesture to show that they value our efforts 8)

Pictures can be found at www.green-fires.ch and www.fcstgallen.ch - Just click where it says "Delmont" and "Bilder"


The table after round 8:

1. Aarau 8 17:5 19
2. St. Gallen 8 12:7 12
--------------------------------
3. Vaduz 7 9:10 10
4. Kriens 8 10:12 10
5. Luzern 7 9:10 9
6. Delmont 8 9:15 6
7. Sion 8 7:14 6

 

[Bartok]

Wow Vlado, you guys like to make a bit of a splash, don't you!!! Every Hibs fan should look at those photographs. They provide a lesson to us in what we should be doing for our team.

Top stuff St Gallen fans, I'm proud to call you brothers!

 

[Vlado]

That was just a lot of what comes out of a file shredder

...I myself was surprised of how good it looks on a picture, problem is just that you are rarely allowed to take such an amount of paper into a stadium (fire concerns : ) I have to admit that I haven't gone through Hibs photo galleries yet, but if you mates follow standard British support, then a touch of colour wouldn't hurt

 

[Vlado]

Originally posted by "Mukadua"

What is the carrot story?

That's a pun on Aarau, the capital of canton Aargau, which is commonly referred to as the "Carrot Land". A local specialty is a carrot cake, which is popular throughout Switzerland as a Birthday cake for children. A lot of Swiss regions have their local agricultural and/or gastronomical specialty, St. Gallen is famous for their veal saussages.

 

[Vlado]

Preview FCSG - SC Kriens

Tonight will be the first of three crucial home matches in a row against SC Kriens (FC Vaduz and FC Sion will follow). FCSG absolutely need to win these three matches in order to avoid a "promotion showdown" in the last match of the season away at Lucerne. The away match against Kriens was lost 1-0 after a poor performance, after which an angry group of supporters even tried to get to the players to voice their displeasure.

The team will probabely play in the same formation as last Sunday, with regular wing back Dal Santo replacing the still banned Canadian international Imhof in defensive midfield.

I'm quite confident the team will win this match, the away win at Delmont should give them a boost plus we are still unbeaten at home this year. Though it's a week day game, I reckon about 9000 fans will follow the game, we still have the second highest average attendance of all Swiss sides, despite playing against relegation !!!

 

[Bartok]

Sacha, we got your parcel at last!!! 8)

Thanks mate, the other one is on its way to you!

You're a mate.

How did St G get on ????

 

[Vlado]

FCSG - SC Kriens 6-1

It was one of those matches to remember (there's also a 7-1 against Luzern and a 7-0 against Yverdon, with Gane scoring 5 times). The team really seem to have realised in what critical situation they are in and have played one of their best matches this season. Kriens never had a chance of winning, FCSG was leading 2-0 already when they had their first opportunity to score, but their free kick only hit the post. FCSG raised the score to 4-0 at halftime and to 6-0 in the second half, Kriens scored their only goal 3 minutes before the final whistle after a corner kick.

Attendance was a slightly disappointing 8000, but those who have found their way to Espenmoos were delighted, of course. As you can imagine, the crowd was amazing, we had to wait a long time to see such a flood of goals again (unless the opponent scored them :? ). Pictures are available on the above mentiond websites...

Next match will be on May 17th at home against FC Vaduz.

Updated table:

1. Aarau 9 19:5 22
2. St. Gallen 9 18:8 15
------------------------------------------
3. Luzern 8 13:10 12
3. Vaduz 8 9:14 10
4. Kriens 9 11:18 10
6. Sion 8 7:14 6
7. Delmont 9 9:17 6

 

[Gruener_Schatten]

Originally posted by "Bartok"

Sacha, we got your parcel at last!!! 8)

Thanks mate, the other one is on its way to you!

You're a mate.

How did St G get on ????

great! I always believed in the Scotish and Swiss mail system

as you can see in vlado`s post, we won in a superb match 6-1! long time ago we scored so many goals. no time to floor my beer(s) (is that grammatically correct? who cares... ) as I can`t hold myself back while st.gallen is scoring. So the grass in front of me got more drunk than me!

the attendance was poor for such a crucial game, because they put the game on thursday evening, since the cupfinal was set on sunday.


I just saw your NOF-table. would you like to see celtic and rangers playing in england? is there a majority of the fans backing such plans?

 

[Bartok]

Originally posted by "Gruener_Schatten"

Sacha, we got your parcel at last!!! 8)

Thanks mate, the other one is on its way to you!

You're a mate.

How did St G get on ????

great! I always believed in the Scotish and Swiss mail system

as you can see in vlado`s post, we won in a superb match 6-1! long time ago we scored so many goals. no time to floor my beer(s) (is that grammatically correct? who cares... ) as I can`t hold myself back while st.gallen is scoring. So the grass in front of me got more drunk than me!

the attendance was poor for such a crucial game, because they put the game on thursday evening, since the cupfinal was set on sunday.


I just saw your NOF-table. would you like to see celtic and rangers playing in england? is there a majority of the fans backing such plans?

Yes Sacha, most Hibs fans would dearly love the gruesome twosome to play in the English Leagues. It would mean less money circulating in the Scottish game, but a much more attractive and competitive league. Every club would be in with a realistic chance of winning something, and that would surely increase attendances.

There was a concerted campaign last year by fans of all the clubs outside of the Old Firm to put pressure on them to leave. It is no secret that celtic and Rangers would love to play in the English leagues too. The problem lies with persuading the English clubs, and Eufa, that it is a good idea.

By the way, congratulations on a great result!

 

[Vlado]

Preview FCSG - FC Vaduz

Another international match ahead, since FC Vaduz are from neighbouring country Liechtenstein. They don't have a league of their own, but play in Swiss leagues (They have a cup, though, which allows FC Vaduz to play in UEFA-Cup every year, since they are by far the strongest side in wee Liechtenstein. This season they played against Livingston, btw.)

The situation is pretty much the same as against Kriens, winning is a must. Canadian international Daniel Imhof will return to the team after his ban, apart from that, the line-up won't change, I guess. Loan players Merenda and Calo will be given fixed contracts for three and two years, respectively. I hope this raises their spirits another notch

The match will be played Saturday 17th, 17:30 CET for those who want to keep their fingers crossed 8)

 

[Trolonto]

Hello

Now i am find this forum.

 

[Vlado]

FCSG - FC Vaduz 1-0

It was a rather poor match from both sides, but FCSG finally managed to score the goal they desperately needed in the 81st minute. After an excellent solo by 18 year old Tranquillo Barnetta (a promise to the future!!), Brasilian midfielder Jairo sent the crowd to heaven.

Lucerne drew 3-3 at Kriens on Sunday, giving FCSG a two point advantage, a win against FC Sion next Saturday and another loss of points by Lucerne would leave us in top league for sure.

Remaining matches - FCSG:

FC Sion (h)
FC Lucerne (a)

Lucerne:

SR Delmont (h)
FC Aarau (a)
FCSG (h)

Table:

1. Aarau 9 19:5 22
2. St. Gallen 10 19:8 18
------------------------------------------
3. Luzern 9 16:13 13
4. Kriens 10 14:21 11
5. Vaduz 9 9:15 10
6. Delmont 10 11:18 9
7. Sion 9 9:16 6

 

[Gruener_Schatten]

@ bartok

The scarf arrived today! Cheers mate!
If it`s not too hot on saturday, I`ll wear it at our crucial game against FC Sion.

Hibernians FC has been founded 4 years before FC St.Gallen, damn!

Did the founders play football right from the start (or rugby first)?

 

[Bartok]

Originally posted by "Gruener_Schatten"

@ bartok

The scarf arrived today! Cheers mate!
If it`s not too hot on saturday, I`ll wear it at our crucial game against FC Sion.

Hibernians FC has been founded 4 years before FC St.Gallen, damn!

Did the founders play football right from the start (or rugby first)?

Delighted you got the scarf, wear it with pride Sacha!

We never played Rugby, though some of our defenders don't know this.

Looks like St Gallen are putting in a determined championship challenge... go St Gallen, we're right with you lads!

 

[Vlado]

We did it !!!

FCSG beat Sion 1-0 yesterday, while Luzern lost at Aarau. We will definitely play NLA next season !!

The match was similar to the one against Vaduz last week, with an opponent who wasn't willing or able to do anything for gameplay except defending their box. FCSG had problems finding a way through the massive defense and it looked like a 0-0 game for a long time. In the 76th minute it was Romanian striker Ionel Gane who managed to score with a volley shot after a free kick by Ivan Dal Santo.

The last match at Luzern, which could have been a real showdown, now is a nice, relaxed opportunity to have a few beers and a chat.

Table:

1. Aarau 11 29:10 28
2. St. Gallen 11 20:8 21
------------------------------------
3. Luzern 11 21:13 16
4. Delmont 12 13:24 12
5. Kriens 11 14:24 11
6. Vaduz 11 13:23 10
7. Sion 11 11:17 9

 

[sauzeeking]

Originally posted by "Vlado"

We did it !!!

FCSG beat Sion 1-0 yesterday, while Luzern lost at Aarau. We will definitely play NLA next season

well done

SK, avoiding the small games this afternoon

 

[Bartok]

Originally posted by "Vlado"

We did it !!!

FCSG beat Sion 1-0 yesterday, while Luzern lost at Aarau. We will definitely play NLA next season !!

The match was similar to the one against Vaduz last week, with an opponent who wasn't willing or able to do anything for gameplay except defending their box. FCSG had problems finding a way through the massive defense and it looked like a 0-0 game for a long time. In the 76th minute it was Romanian striker Ionel Gane who managed to score with a volley shot after a free kick by Ivan Dal Santo.

The last match at Luzern, which could have been a real showdown, now is a nice, relaxed opportunity to have a few beers and a chat.

Table:

1. Aarau 11 29:10 28
2. St. Gallen 11 20:8 21
------------------------------------
3. Luzern 11 21:13 16
4. Delmont 12 13:24 12
5. Kriens 11 14:24 11
6. Vaduz 11 13:23 10
7. Sion 11 11:17 9

Fantastic news, I am delighted for you That was some storming finish to the season you guys managed to produce, most impressive. I'll check in to your forum a bit later.

[color]

 

[Vlado]

Thanks for the congratulations, mates...

Big news hit today, FCSG is going to give away no less than twelve (!!) players (four on loan) and start building a new team of youngsters plus a few of the older, more experienced players. The biggest shock probably is, that striker Ionel Gane (the one who scored the important goal against Sion) will be given away, too. He contributed a lot to the 1999/2000 championship and has always had a green-white heart. I really wish he didn't leave the club, but he's been a substitute all spring and there are rumours he has some quarrels with manager Peischl. Still sad, though...

Tomorrow will be the last match of a very disappointing season (remaining in top league really was the least you could expect), which brought 3 managers, a lot of losses and bad team performances, which climaxed last autumn with a 11-3 away loss to newly promoted FC Wil.... :

Like I said, next season will be the beginning of a new era, the 99/00 championship team has broken apart completely now and expectations will be much lower, I guess. For my part, I'll be quite happy with just avoiding any relegation threats.

Cheers...

 

[Vlado]

As one of the first European leagues, the Swiss started their new season yesterday. A lot of new faces in St. Gallen (mostly no-names) and a new league name (Super League, what genius came up with that ?? : ) brought a first major disappointment. The team just isn't competitive enough yet, the break was too short for all the new players to settle in.

After half an hour Young Boys lead 3-0 and defeat was "secured", final score was 4-1. Stphane Chapuisat, CL winner with Borussia Dortmund back in '97, scored twice in the first 15', Leandro and in the final minutes 17yo talent Vonlanthen, who has a contract with PSV Eindhoven, scored the other two for YB. Alex Tachie-Mensah had brought us back 3-1 shortly before halftime.

Next match will be Saturday away at Xamax Neuchtel, no points to steal from there the last two years, so why should it work this time ?? After all, they just beat champion GC away yesterday. But a nice trip anyway...


Scores first round:

Basel - Zrich 2:1 (1:0)
GC - Xamax 0:1 (0:0)
Servette - Wil 3:1 (1:1)
St. Gallen - Young Boys 1:4 (1:3)
Thun - Aarau 1:1 (1:1)

guess who takes the last place :

 

[Bartok]

Hi mate, thanks for keeping in touch. Sounds like you might struggle again this season eh?

I will make it my business to post Hibs fortunes on your St G website if you could do the same here, that would be great ;)

We remember Chapuisat well, don't know how old he is but he must be a fairly senior player by now surely?

And how does a football team get a name like Xamax? Weird. :?

 

[Vlado]

Originally posted by "Bartok"

Hi mate, thanks for keeping in touch. Sounds like you might struggle again this season eh?

You're welcome.

I guess so, the club's official season objective is to avoid relegation. Seems like they're getting modest, too. Well, as I said, there are a lot of new players and the team just need a little more time to settle in. My personal opinion is that it should be possible to stay away from the "dangerous" 9th place. As disappointing as the loss was, you have to consider that YB made it for a UEFA-cup spot last season, they're one of the better Swiss sides. I reckon them in the top 4 again this season. It will be important to win the matches against the poorer sides like Wil (that's a must anyway, we have hurt feelings there), Thun, Aarau, and to steal a few points from the big ones now and then.

I will make it my business to post Hibs fortunes on your St G website if you could do the same here, that would be great ;)

That would be great indeed. Which forum did you have in mind, the one at foros.de or the one at fcsgforum.ch ?? I guess you'll reach more people in the second one.

We remember Chapuisat well, don't know how old he is but he must be a fairly senior player by now surely?

I thinks he's about 34 by now, he will be retiring from professional football after this season, still a national cap, though

And how does a football team get a name like Xamax? Weird. :?

Weird indeed

They were formed when two clubs from Neuchtel merged and they decided to name the new club after one of the old Swiss football heroes, Max Abegglen, who for some reason insited on being called "Xam" and had played for one of the old clubs. That's the story...

BTW: "Neuchtel" means "Newcastle" :!:

 

[Vlado]

A short update on Saturday's matches...

St. Gallen lost 2-0 at Xamax Neuchtel after another poor performance, not much to add to what I already wrote above.

Champion GC struggled again and lost their second match at Aarau, with 3 GC players sent off and their supporters being close to a pitch invasion :shock: :

Xamax and Servette Geneva are leading with 6 points each, St. Gallen, GC and FC Zrich still without points after two rounds.

 

[Bartok]

Originally posted by "Vlado"

I guess so, the club's official season objective is to avoid promotion.

Relegation? You are in a very competitive league, and maybe with so many changes in personnel it makes sense to try and consolidate before becoming too ambitious. Fans want their team to be world-beaters, but clubs have to be a bit more realistic.

That would be great indeed. Which forum did you have in mind, the one at foros.de or the one at fcsgforum.ch ?? I guess you'll reach more people in the second one.

I'll take your advice on that one Vlado mate. In fact I'll post on both.

Tough about getting beaten by Xamax as well, I'm sure results will improve soon. If not, just get stuck in to that Aigle les Murailles ;)

 

[Vlado]

Originally posted by "Bartok"

I guess so, the club's official season objective is to avoid promotion.

Relegation? You are in a very competitive league, and maybe with so many changes in personnel it makes sense to try and consolidate before becoming too ambitious. Fans want their team to be world-beaters, but clubs have to be a bit more realistic.

:twisted: Relegation, of course... :

But on the other hand, you're right. We already play top league, it's really overambitious to try a promotion to wherever...nirvana, maybe


Don't know right now what it's about with that Aigle thing (that's a town in Switzerland), I guess I'm missing your point, maybe because it's getting late...

 

[Bartok]

It's one of my favourite wines mate, sorry should have said. It tastes SO good...

 

[Vlado]

Is it a Swiss wine or is it just a coincidence that it's named Aigle ??


FCSG - FC Aarau 0-0

The good news first, the team showed their best performance so far and were dominating Aarau for most of the match. Defense was solid and midfield was able to hold the ball, but as soon as it reached the box, play became very harmless. The best opportunities to score were a header by Alex Tachie-Mensah that hit the bar and a shot by Moreno Merenda that was blocked by a Aarau defender, both after a corner kick. The bad news, as you can see from the result, is that we didn't win the match...it's rather two points lost than one point won...


At least we left the two clubs from Zrich behind us ;)

1. Servette 3 3 0 0 9:2 9
2. Basel 3 3 0 0 9:5 9
3. Young Boys 3 2 0 1 8:5 6
4. Xamax 3 2 0 1 5:4 6
5. Aarau 3 1 2 0 3:2 5
6. Thun 3 0 2 1 3:7 2
7. Wil 2 0 1 1 2:4 1
8. St. Gallen 3 0 1 2 1:6 1
9. Grasshoppers 2 0 0 2 1:3 0
10. FC Zrich 3 0 0 3 2:5 0

 

[Bartok]

I can't believe Grasshoppers and FC Z have "nil points", I thought these were top Swiss sides? A point for St G, a wee start at least mate. Thanks for keeping us informed.

Yes Aigle is indeed Swiss, excellent wee drop of wine ;)

 

[Vlado]

GC are a top side, they're record title holder and cup winner, and last season's champion, but they have a very young team and lost their most important player, national cap Ricardo Cabanas, to Guingamp. They had a very unlucky start to the new season and will get up again for sure.

FC Zrich are a bit of a difference, they usually have high hopes every season and just as usually they fail to play up to it. Again, they are considered "transfer winner", but have shown very modest perfomances so far. Saturday against Young Boys they were struggling very hard, offense was lousy and defense even lousier, YB should have made it 4-0 at halftime. I hope their streak of crappy matches will continue a bit, because we're playing them at Letzigrund on Saturday.

BTW: Is Aigle a red or a white wine ?? They mostly grow whites there, AFAIK...

 

[Bartok]

Thanks for that Vlado, I feel my knowledge of Swiss football is growing a wee bit ;)

Aigle is white, at least the stuff I buy is, and delicious on a hot sunny day

 

[Vlado]

What a useless knowledge...

Back to serious, it's always good to shift your focus away from the big leagues, there's so much to be discovered in the small and neglected leagues like the Swiss or the Austria one, and of course the SPL, if you don't focus on the Old Firm sides, they're a bore ;)

 

[Bartok]

I couldn't agree more mate, and it is a great shame that in today's financial climate the biggest clubs continue to grow whilst the smaller ones come under more and more financial pressure.

Outside of Celtic and Rangers, the other teams in the Scottish Premier League are all struggling to make ends meet, and most of them have been forced to make stringent cuts in players wages.

I think it is inevitable in the longer term that many smaller European clubs will disappear, and the bigger clubs in some countries will be looking to stop playing domestic league football altogether in favour of an expanded European Superleague.

 

[Vlado]

It's become a bit less promising since the drop in tv-money, but I think a lot of the big clubs would like to play some kind of European league. Just another step towards an "Americanization" of football...

But back to this weekend: FC Zrich - FC St. Gallen 2-2

Another promising match, but unfortunately another draw, too. FC SG started off quite well and after 11 mins and a stupid ball loss by FC Z keeper Taini it was 0-1 by Alex Tachie-Mensah. FC Z came on stronger towards halftime, but our keeper Razzetti played an excellent match and showed some world class saves.

Shortly after halftime though, FC Z managed to equalize and play became very open with good chances for both sides. It was another FC Z blackout that brought us up 1-2. 17 yo defender Dzemili deflected a cross with his hand inside the box, he was sent off and Alex scored again from the penalty spot. We had another few opportunities to secure the win, but FC Z were pushing again in the last minutes and in the 89th they were awarded a penalty kick. Razzetti stopped the shot with his stomach, but the ball bounced into the feet of a FC Z player who scored the equalizer...

On the one hand, we can be happy to win one point on the road, especially considering the poor away performances last season, but on the other hand, we were just minutes from our first win this season. :? BTW: Check out this picture...


The fourth round brought the third loss to GC !!! That's a champion, eh... :mrgreen:

Aarau - Servette 1:1 (0:0)
Neuchtel Xamax - Young Boys 1:2 (1:0)
Thun - Grasshoppers 3:2 (2:1)
Wil - Basel 2:3 (1:0)
FC Zrich - St. Gallen 2:2 (0:1)

1. Basel 4 4 0 0 12: 7 12
2. Servette 4 3 1 0 10: 3 10
3. Young Boys 4 3 0 1 10: 6 9
4. Aarau 4 1 3 0 4: 3 6
5. Xamax 4 2 0 2 6: 6 6
6. Thun 4 1 2 1 6: 9 5
7. Grasshoppers 4 1 0 3 8: 9 3
8. St. Gallen 4 0 2 2 3: 8 2
9. FC Zrich 4 0 1 3 4: 7 1
10. Wil 4 0 1 3 7:12 1

 

[Bartok]

That is a cool photo

Can you imagine seeing that at a Hibs game?

 

[Vlado]

FCSG - FC Thun 1-1

FCSG had a very poor first half and were 0-1 down at halftime, but managed to come back 1-1 in a game that should have been won, considering that Thun has about one third of FCSG's budget and lost a lot of players since last season. I won't go into detail on the match, because it's really not worth it, just let me say that it was a poor match and we are definitely fighting relegation again.

The next rounds are at Geneva vs. Servette and at home vs. GC, two games were I don't really expect to win a point at all.

 

[Vlado]

Servette FC - FCSG 1-3

Finally our first win of the season, and what a nice one. Servette was unbeaten before and we played at their stadium, so you couldn't really expect a point at all. FCSG started off excellent, putting pressure on Servette right on and in the 7th minute a shot by youngster Barnetta and slightly deviated by a defender found its way into the net. Servette were unable to react and their only dangerous balls were set pieces, but our keeper Razzetti showed a brilliant performance again, parrying all attempts.

After about 50', Pavlovic was sent off after his second booking and, being one man down, it looked like we might lose it, but a very nice counter attack brought us up 2-0 after some 60', Servette scored a late goal in the 90th, but FCSG made it 3-1 three minutes into injury time after another fast counter attack.

This has been our best game this season (obviously must have been), and gives rise to hopes that we can stay away from the relegation spots without too much difficulty.

Next match is at home against GC, who beat city rival FCZ 1-0 on Sunday. They'll play the 2nd leg of their Champions League qualifier on the Wednesday after, so let's hope their minds are already on that match, but to stay realistically, a draw would be a good result.

PS: It was pyrotechnics day again, so take a look at >thisURL] picture ;)