Match Report: FC Heidenheim (H)

Having missed the heroic performance against Bayern, it was a thrill to be back at the Alte Försterei for a game against struggling Heidenheim.

On paper, a game we should win, especially off the back of said Bayern game and a battling win at St Pauli.

Baumgart shuffled the pack slightly following the Pauli game, an unorthodox front three of Burke, Jeong and Ansah tasked with unpicking the visitors.

First Half

We kicked off into 12 minutes of silent protest from all corners of the stadium and mirrored nationwide, in response to planned crackdowns on fans.

It was initially low quality fayre, nothing to break the silence other than a Heidenheim attack which brushed the bar, and a rare quick ball forward leading to a cross for Köhn which he screwed over from a difficult volley.

A lack of singing and sticking to Sprite for the first half makes you realise that you're just stood there watching some blokes play football, so it was a relief to have the soundtrack back after the 12th minute.

Union were generally on top, but without causing much danger. Burke as the main striker had little to run at, the visitors incredibly deep and narrow. That initial shot and a couple of corners aside, Heidenheim offered little going forward.

The game was stopped for a good few minutes while two Heidenheim players collided and one stayed down for the count following a corner, the Gegengerade discouraging some uncharitable chants from the Waldseite.

To the left of us, a group happily engaged in a competitive smoking contest, huge plumes of smoke obscuring the on-field action. At least one of them needs to be medically studied, there is no way lungs should hold so much.

Set pieces as ever looked out biggest threat. Doekhi, Querfeld and Leite all caused problems, the latter looking for all the world to have scored with a fine front post header, but it flashed agonisingly across goal and wide.

Better was to come.

The Train Whisperer has a trick where every time he goes to the toilet, a goal happens. He announced to us that he was going to give it a go to see if it'd spark a goal, and didn't even get to the bottom of the stand before it yielded results.

With Union on top and Heidenheim reduced to long balls to nobody, Union were able to turn the screw and win the ball high up. It flashed across the middle outside the box, then a fine touch from - I'll be honest I didn't see - set up Khedira with a half volley inside the box which he gleefully drilled past the keeper for a narrowly deserved lead.

A goal from open play! Heady times in Köpenick.

A somewhat flat mood was transformed, Union seeing it home to half time.

Second half

Ah, the second half.

A half which actually started quite well. Heidenheim were dire. It's hard to overstate quite how crap they were for probably 25 to 30 minutes.

Union were not exactly rampant, but seemed to have more than enough to see the game out.

One scamper forward aside, we had the better chances. The best involved a three man break led by Khedira, transformed recently into a marauding box to box player. With Heidenheim outnumbered and Jeong free as a bird in the box, he opted instead to shoot and it was blocked.

Jeong was absolutely fuming to the point where Khedira came up to apologise when Jeong was subbed a few minutes later.

Burke had also gone off for Ilic and seemed less than pleased about it. Our battling striker Ilic didn't have the best of games after coming on, looking in need of a rest.

We weren't exactly shining, but Heidenheim were utterly dire for at least the first 70 minutes. I can't remember a worse team.

It seemed we would see out the game, the Waldseite even breaking into an extended bout of Christmas carols from about 60 minutes onwards.

But a one nil lead is always precarious, and as time started to run out Union started to retreat and invite the visitors on to us.

Some of our play became lackadaisical; centre backs surging forward, trying little tricks. In Leite's case it actually worked, but Querfeld got caught out after charging to the edge of the Heidenheim box and we barely got away with the resulting counter.

Ansah looked utterly spent, but battled brilliantly for a bouncing ball to set up Rothe in the area. He danced past a couple but fired into the side netting from close range.

Kral, in his weird floating role, got a good run in, tried a pirouette, fell over it, but still managed to slip in a teammate on the right, but the cross was snaffled out.

Especially after Kemlein went off, there was nobody really to put a calm foot on the ball, and as we ticked into the last minutes, Heidenheim started to push for an unlikely equaliser.

It inevitably came with just a minute or so of normal time, Union players tumbling all over the place as Heidenheim got in from the right, a low cross turned past Ronnow for an equaliser that was barely deserved but somehow fully on the cards.

Doekhi collapsed in anguish at two points dropped, but it was somewhat premature as there was still plenty of time to even lose the remaining one.

With the last of four minutes almost done, Heidenheim won a corner and we could all see what was coming.

True to the script, a team which had offered no aerial threat all game found some right then, a routine header flashing past Ronnow, the visiting bench clearing in delight as they bounced in front of the away end.

So, a freakish but rather embarrassing end to a game which Union should have won comfortably.

We do often struggle to put away teams who are happy to sit back, where we need a little more calmness.

But in the end, what does it matter. We got to watch Union, sing Christmas songs and hang out with our friends for a few hours on a cold and dark November day.

We enjoyed a beer in the cool evening outside the Abseitsfalle, before a very kind young man on the S Bahn offered us an alarming variety of mini aperitifs from out of his rucksack, a classy touch honestly.

Still, no better place to be on a Saturday afternoon!

Eisern!