Matchday 12: Two neighbourhood duels in Grünwettersbach and Ochsenhausen, Mainz welcomes Saarbrücken
Even before the cup winner is determined on Sunday at the Final Four in the ratiopharm arena in Neu-Ulm, the second half of the TTBL season starts on Thursday with the match between Grünwettersbach and Grenzau. ASV has a tight programme: the club is the only one of the Final Four participants to play a league match beforehand. An overview of the 12th matchday.
ASV Grünwettersbach - TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau
"I think it's good that we have a Bundesliga match before the Final Four," explained Ricardo Walther, ASV Grünwettersbach professional, in an interview with Florian Manzke at the start of the week. He and his team will kick off the second half of the TTBL season on Thursday at 7 p.m. - and against an opponent that the Grünwettersbach team will be very familiar with: ASV welcomes TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau. The first leg took place just a fortnight ago - on 21 December. Grenzau won 3:1 in the previous year, and now the neighbourhood duel not only offers Grünwettersbach the opportunity to get in the mood for the Final Four, but also for revenge. After all, both teams are in close proximity to each other in the table with a points balance of 8:12. ASV are currently in eighth place due to their only slightly better match record, with TTC right behind them. This could change on Thursday when the two teams meet.
TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell - TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt
The following day, TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell will host TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt. Fulda go into the new year with a tailwind, as the team led by Ruwen Filus and Fan Bo Meng secured their first win of the season against Mainz on the last matchday. However, with one win from ten games, the pressure is still on for Fulda to collect points in the relegation battle. The situation is different in Bergneustadt: The team there is in the middle of the table with a balanced record of 10:10. Nevertheless, points are still needed to pull away from the teams from Ochsenhausen and Bad Königshofen, who are currently level on points. The match between the two teams kicks off at 7 p.m. on Friday, 5 January.
TSV Bad Königshofen - SV Werder Bremen
TSV Bad Königshofen and the visitors from SV Werder Bremen will meet at the same time in Bad Königshofen. Bremen won the first leg in October with a relatively clear 3-0 victory when both teams were at their best. TSV Bad Königshofen spent the short winter break in seventh place in the league, having suffered a 3-1 defeat against Post SV Mühlhausen shortly before Christmas. Before that, however, they had won their matches against Grünwettersbach and Bergneustadt. SV Werder Bremen have also followed the same pattern. The last four games included a defeat against Mühlhausen, two wins against Saarbrücken and Grünwettersbach and a defeat against Bergneustadt on 22 December. So now both teams will be looking to bounce back successfully when TSV Bad Königshofen welcomes SV Werder Bremen to the Shakehands Arena at home on Friday at 7 p.m.
TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen - Post SV Mühlhausen
After a one-week break, one of the cup finalists will come into action: On 12 December, TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen will welcome the team from Post SV Mühlhausen. This match is also a duel in the table neighbourhood between fourth and fifth place. The teams are separated by just two points, which is one of the reasons why both are aiming for the top. The last meeting between the opponents in the league was several months ago, on 4 September Mühlhausen won 3:1 against Ochsenhausen in a hard-fought match. Three of the four matches went into the fifth set. Ovidiu Ionescu, who held his nerve against both Samuel Kulczycki and Hugo Calderano and twice contributed a 3:2 victory, was particularly decisive from Mühlhausen's point of view. The current clash also promises to be exciting. Before that, however, it will be decided on Sunday whether Ochsenhausen will start the match with the euphoria of winning the cup or whether this privilege will be granted to ASV Grünwettersbach, Borussia Düsseldorf or 1. FC Saarbrücken-TT.
1.FSV Mainz 05 - 1. FC Saarbrücken-TT
The latter will travel to Mainz on Saturday, 13 January. The match is undoubtedly the meeting between the top and bottom of the table. FCS are currently level with Borussia Düsseldorf in second place in the league, while the Mainz team is back in last place in the table after the Fulda win in the basement duel on the last matchday. Nevertheless, it is not expected to be one-sided. The team from Saarbrücken only narrowly won the first leg 3:2, with the decision coming down to the hard-fought final doubles match between Patrick Franziska/Cedric Nuytinck and Luka Mladenovic/Carlo Rossi. Now it's time for revenge when the first balls start flying in Mainz at 7pm.
The overview of the 12th matchday
Thursday, January 4
7 p.m.: ASV Grünwettersbach – TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau
Friday, January 5
7 p.m.: TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell - TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt
7 p.m.: TSV Bad Königshofen - SV Werder Bremen
Friday, January 12
7 p.m.: TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen – Post SV Mühlhausen
Saturday, January 13
7 p.m.: 1. FSV Mainz 05 – 1. FC Saarbrücken-TT
All TTBL matches will be broadcast live on Dyn.
Text: Julian Hörndlein
Featured image above: Patrick Franziska from 1. FC Saarbrücken-TT (Photo: Sascha Markus)