Duisburg still in title hunt after downing Frankfurt
Sunday, May 3, 2009
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Inka Grings and Simone Laudehr were on target as FCR 2001 Duisburg kept their hopes of winning the Bundesliga title alive by beating reigning champions 1. FFC Frankfurt 2-1 at the Brentanobad stadium in Frankfurt.
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FCR 2001 Duisburg kept their hopes of winning the Frauen-Bundesliga title alive by beating reigning champions 1. FFC Frankfurt 2-1 at the Brentanobad stadium in Frankfurt.
Grings goal
The day began well for the UEFA Women's Cup finalists with the news that Bundesliga top scorer Inka Grings had recovered from a calf injury in time to take on the titleholders, and the German international grabbed her 23rd league goal this season with 23 minutes gone to give an attacking Duisburg side the lead. Three minutes later, they doubled their lead, Grings's international colleague Simone Laudehr scoring in front of the crowd of 2,830 spectators.
Frankfurt response
While the visitors deserved their advantage after dominating the first half, their opponents came out of their shell after the restart and, despite missing the injured Birgit Prinz, they pulled a goal back through defender Sarah Günther with 19 minutes remaining. That made for an exciting end to the game, with Duisburg managing to hold on to secure their fourth win in as many games against Frankfurt this term.
Duisburg pressure
"The pressure from a very gifted Duisburg side was too much, so our mistakes were a direct result of that," admitted Frankfurt coach Günter Wegmann afterwards. "My team has had a sort of crash course this season, learning to deal with difficult situations as well," said Duisburg's Martina Voss. "When it mattered, we played our best football."
Title hopes
With three games left, Duisburg lie four points behind leaders FC Bayern München and one behind second-placed 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam as they chase their first title since 1999/00. They face Zvezda-2005 in the first leg of the UEFA Women's Cup final in Kazan on 16 May, with the return leg to be held in the MSV Arena in Duisburg on 22 May. Frankfurt are five points behind Duisburg, meaning the only three-time UEFA Women's Cup winners will find it tough to secure the top-two finish they need to enter the inaugural UEFA Women's Champions League next season.