Augsburg is known for its puppet show. That’s why.

Damnit. Tough one to lose, especially given our dominance over the course of the game. Easy to make some excuses here, or say that we’ve regressed to the norm, but the matter of fact is that we had our chances and didn’t take advantage. Especially brutal is that our former keeper can basically be credited with securing the win for Augsburg.

It’s especially annoying (but only annoying) because he made a big show about 1.) how much he still cares about Union and 2.) how much he wanted to beat us. Totally fair and understandable. He’s rightfully a controversial figure for many: on one hand, he was an excellent keeper who played an important role in promotion. On the other hand, he didn’t always understand the Kurve, and left the club for a richer deal, leading some to label him a “mercenary”. I don’t know if I buy that. I can’t fault the guy for leaving to get paid more. And I respect his intensity even if it occasionally feels overdriven (especially now that we’re on opposite sides). Defector wrote a great article about how ego can be helpful, and I immediately thought of him.

So I don’t really have a problem with him, and I thank him for his service to our club, but at the same time I’m irked by his attempt to play both sides. He still carries on about how much Union means to him, and refers to his tattoo (in honor of promotion) while talking a lot about how much he wants to beat us. He made his choice, and while no doubt his time at Union got him to where he is now, we’re definitely opponents. Making headlines with smack-talk doesn’t really speak to respect. In any case, I wish him well, and hope that he feels like his decision was worth it, no matter what the final table looks like.  

What is actually pretty cool about the Augsburg game, and which was sadly missing this year, is the “Augsburg Calling” event. It’s a really cool get-together sponsored by “General” Seckler, a famous Augsburg fan who has taken it upon himself to host get-togethers with visiting fans. By all accounts, it’s always a raucous good time and it does a lot to support all the things we love about true fan culture. They did do an online version this year, broadcast live from a tent (cold weather camping pretty bold move at this time of year in Bavaria, I’d say) so that was at least nice.

Hopefully next year the General will be able to host his event live—and hopefully we’ll make it out there one of these days. This kind of multilateral cooperation amongst fans to support the traditions we all love is great, and I hope it continues. It’s already inspired a similar event in Köpenick. At the end of the day, we’re competitors, but the context in which we compete matters, and respect to the General and people like him for making sure that context continues to be an enjoyable one.

Anyway, on to the next…