League leaders still a size too big for Rugby Rostock
Nov 24
On Saturday, the second-placed Elche from Rugby Rostock met the unbeaten league leaders and reigning champions of the North Association League – the Hamburg Exiles – in the local rugby arena “Ostseeallee”. The hosts had big plans for this top game, but after the final whistle of the game they realized that Hamburg were still a bit too big for them that afternoon.
From the start, the Exiles put the home team under a lot of pressure and put their stamp on the game. It wasn’t that the Rostock team started badly or had to find their way into the game, quite the opposite. From the start of the game there was fierce fighting for every inch of the pitch. In particular, the Rostock team were able to keep up with the expected physical toughness from Hamburg throughout the entire game and didn’t let it bother them.
But in terms of speed, understanding of the game and switching, the Hamburg team were simply better. Every Rostock mistake was punished coldly. Only when a penalty was converted by the Exiles kicker, who really had a great day and converted almost all of the kicks safely or repeatedly caused danger in the Elche defense with wide-reaching kicks from the game.
After just a few minutes, the league leaders were able to take a 10-0 lead by converting a penalty kick and an elevated attempt. Two more attempts with increases followed before the break, so that shortly before the half-time whistle it was already 24:0 for the guests from Hamburg. But then the Rostock team finally rewarded themselves, having played well up until then, but unfortunately making too many technical and tactical mistakes that consistently punished the Exiles.
The Rostock storm tank Arthur Heinze, with the support of his storm comrades, broke through Hamburg’s defense and heaved himself into the league leader’s in-goal area. The Rostock playmaker Johannes Beiker safely hit the increase that was due and thus shortened the score to 24:7. A little later, the confident referee, Pierre Fandrich, blew the whistle for half-time, during which Elche coach Martin Gordon Hille praised his team for their strong defensive performance and asked them to continue to defend with concentration and aggression.
But in the second half of the game, the Exiles marched hard towards the Rostock defensive line. Hamburg’s fast and ball-confident backline players were able to break through the defensive line again and again and score five more tries. The Warnow men were mostly forced into defense and found it difficult to break free from the Exiles’ playful pressure.
So after 80 tough but always fair minutes, the referee whistled off a good rugby game in which Hamburg clearly lived up to their role as favorites and Rostock were still able to leave the field with their heads held high and to applause from the spectators. The Elche fought hard against the league leaders throughout the entire game, but ultimately were unable to keep up with the Exiles’ high pace, so the final score of 55:7 was absolutely deserved for Hamburg, but perhaps a little too high from Rostock’s point of view.
After the end of the game, Rostock coach Martin Gordon Hille was extremely proud of his team and only had positive words to say about their performance: “We gave the Exiles a real battle. I was surprised at how well the team handled Hamburg’s toughness and how tough our defense was. At the end of the day, we delivered a strong performance today that also demanded respect from our opponents. Of course we were clearly inferior in some points, but we will work on that and we can only grow in games like this and against strong opponents. In any case, I am very proud of the team’s performance.”
The Rostock rugby players are now going into the winter break, where they will work on many points such as fitness, speed and of course rugby skills.
Playing for Rostock: Ramm, Ahlvers, Heinze, Dwars, Voß, Grieger, Bollnow, Heindl ©, W. Peters, Beiker, Hallier, Paulsen, Holovko, Zirkel, Seifert, Seyfarth, da Cunha, Eggebrett, Bettenhausen, Knauf, Böttcher, J. Peters.
PM · Photo: Sophia Beiker
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Johannes Beiker: Absolutely, fitness is key, but I would also argue that teamwork and communication on the field need to be prioritized. Building a strong connection between players can make a significant difference in our performance. As for Arthur, having someone with his experience will definitely bolster our forward line and help develop our strategies moving forward.
Interviewer: Good day to both of you, Arthur Heinze and Johannes Beiker. First of all, I would like to congratulate you both on a hard-fought game against the reigning champions, Hamburg Exiles. As we can see from the article, Rugby Rostock had a commendable performance despite losing to the league leaders. Could you share your thoughts on the game? Arthur, as a storm tank, could you tell us how it felt to score the first and only try for your team?
Arthur Heinze: Thank you for having us. Yes, it was definitely a challenging game against a formidable opponent, but I am proud of my team for keeping up with them throughout the match. As for scoring the try, it was an incredible feeling. It was something we’ve been working towards and to see it finally happen was a fulfilling moment. Although we couldn’t convert the increase, it showed that we still had the potential to cause some damage despite the scoreboard.
Johannes Beiker: I agree, Arthur. We knew it would be a tough game, but we came in with a game plan and stuck to it. As for the try, Arthur’s efforts were definitely supported by the entire team, particularly the forwards who provided the initial forward thrust. It gave us some much-needed momentum, but as Martin [Gordon Hille, Rostock coach] mentioned, there are areas we need to work on to improve our overall performance.
Interviewer: That leads me to my next question, Martin mentioned in his statement that Rostock will work on their fitness, speed, and rugby skills during the winter break. As players, what do you think the team needs to focus on the most? Arthur, you’re a new addition to the team; what are you bringing to the table in terms of skills and experience?
Arthur Heinze: Well, I’ve been playing rugby for a while now, and one thing I’ve learned is that fitness cannot be overlooked. While speed and skills are crucial, it’s essential to maintain a high level of fitness throughout the season. As for what I bring to the table, I can contribute my experience in forward play and tackling, which I believe can help strengthen our defense. The compactness and aggression we displayed against Hamburg were commendable, but we need to work on
