The women’s team of 1. FC Union Berlin lost only their second game of the 2. Liga season on Sunday afternoon, going down by a goal to nil away at the only side to have beaten them already, Eintracht Frankfurt II. The single goal of a frustrating day for the guests, was scored in the 53^rd  minute by Elena  Mühlemann.

1. FC Union Berlin: Bösl – Metzker, Schneider, Weiss, Steinert – Heiseler (74. Abu Sabbah), Markou (74. Rurack), Moraitou – Halverkamps (64. Seiro), D. Orschmann (46. Janez), Reissner

Eintracht Frankfurt II: Altenburg – Bednorz, Memminger, Specht, Wallrabenstein – Mühlemann, Schwoerer (64. Demirbas), Zimmermann – Berg, Rückert (72. Schmidt-Sommer), Wild (87. Schäfer)

The starting XI

Ailien Poese made just the one change from the side that started the superb win over Sand last weekend. In goal was Cara Bösl, behind a back four of Pia Metzker, on the right, Tomke Schneider, returning to central defence, Anna Weiß and Judith Steinert on the left.

Eleni Markou shifted forwards to take the place of the suspended Celine Frank in holding midfield behind the pair of Athanasia Moraitou and captain Lisa Heiseler. This left Antonia Halverkamps and Naika Reissner to attack the flanks, right and left respectively, either side of striker, Dina Orschmann.

Attendance: 269

Goal: 1-0 Mühlemann (53.)

Union Take the Front Foot, but First Half Remains Goalless

This is now starting to resemble a grudge. Union's women have  lost three times in almost two years, once to Eintracht Frankfurt's first team in the cup, and now twice to their second team in the league. Neither time have they been outplayed.

And as this furstrating  game kicked off, the batural order  of  the  world seemed ready to re-assert itself. Few have been in as good form this calendar year as last week’s double-goalscorer, Naika Reissner, and she started off here, just as she had ended last week’s superb win over Sand - on the front foot, terrorising her marker, daring her to put a boot in. Her sleight of foot, allied with balance, pace and daring.

Now you see it, now you don’t.

She won two corners in the first two minutes as Union looked to make an early dent into a Frankfurt II side who had so irked them in November with their win at the Alte Försterei.

But it wasn’t through the flight and guile of their play that Union would get their first chance, it was through the almost catastrophic mistake of Eintracht keeper, Lina Altenburg, who gave the ball to Dina Orschmann on a plate as she meandered out of her box. It was to her good fortune that Union’s striker was back near the half-way line and couldn’t get enough of a contact to capitalise on the unexpected gift. 

With ten minutes past, Union were clearly the better side, pressing high and hard, trying to force more mistakes, always searching for space to move into – and their adventurousness summed up by Tomke Schneider’s barrelling run forwards, playing a one-two with Pia Metzker as she burst into the Eintracht half. But the hosts looked to attack down Union’s flanks. Tessa Zimmermann won their first corner after a dash down the left before Cara Bösl made her first stop, taking a deflected shot from above head height, making little fuss.

Union, however, weren’t to be put off their intended course, and came close again as the impressive Moraitou sent in two dangerous corners in a row, the first taking a deflection after Schneider’s header, the second, deeper, swinging in, requiring a diving stop from Altenburg.

When Rosa Rueckert tried to break, with Union caught suddenly short at the back following another set-piece, Orschmann tracked her down quickly, knocking her off the ball, snuffing out the danger almost as soon as it had begun.

Then, with half an hour played, the already injury-ravaged Union had to face a fearful moment as Orschmann dropped to her knees. Schneider approached, before she was treated and led off the pitch, tenderly. The applause that came from the Union fans on the black plastic seats of the main stand as she rejoined a moment later was tinged with relief.

Still Reissner caused problems, and she flashed another ball across goal, cut back but with no-one on the end of it, after yet another darting run had caused panic in the Eintracht ranks. Moraitou then dropped a free kick inches over the bar with a 25-yard free kick, that she bent around and over the wall and had Altenburg briefly flailing desperately for the ball as it dipped at the last.

The impressive Schneider shrugged Emma Memminger off the ball when the Frankfurt striker dared to enter the Union box with half time looming. She was calm and calculated against her former side. Schneider, it should not be forgotten, was in the side that won in Köpenick last time. She picked up a yellow card before the half was out, any sympathy she had for her former team-mates not showing as they deigned to cross the halfway line.

Union’s biggest chance came just before the break, when a towering, lofted free kick from Moraitou seemed to change its flight in the air, falling perfectly for her fellow Greek international, Eleni Markou, whose header drawing a fine diving stop from Altenburg before Heiseler’s follow-up was somehow cleared out from among the teeming crowds in the box.

Second half

As the Union players appeared for the second half, Orschmann remained in the changing rooms, the knock she had sustained obviously still weighing on her. Poese replaced her with Korina Janez.

The hosts seemed to have taken a little respite in Union’s talismanic striker’s absence, pushing Union back, and with six minutes of the second half played, they took the lead. This time it came as Bösl was left helpless following Memminger’s excellent run down the left. Her cross to Elena Mühlemann was pin-point and was clinically put away.

History, suddenly, seemed to be repeating itself, and Eintracht II were as if anew. They stood firm where before they had wobbled, and Poese sent on Elli Seiro for Halverkamps with 25 minutes to play, hoping her fresh legs may just cause trouble for the hosts.

But instead, they refused to wilt, and michala Specht’s tackle on Reissner was a beauty, tough and well-timed.  Nothing would go their way, because even as Seiro put the ball in the net, following a fine, sweeping move, that saw Altenburg fingertip Metzker’s shot away, she was called offside. Inexplicably so, the Unioner in the stadium cried.

Union redoubled their efforts - again Specht was to prove an impassable object for Reissner – and with just over 15 minutes to play Poese threw her final cards on the table in the form of Sarah Abu Sabbah, on for Lisa Heiseler, and Zita Rurack for Markou.

But for all their pressure, their efforts were increasingly fruitless, and the sight of Bösl, up at the halfway line as Moraitou prepared to hit another corner in, told much of the story. Indeed, Frankfurt should have made it two with just under five minutes to play when Marlene Wild put over the bar when free, five yards out in front of goal.

Union threw everything they had at their hosts in the final minutes, but the closest they came was again when a chance was snuffed out by the superb Specht. With five minutes played past 90, a final ball was lofted into the box, but it drifted over everyone’s heads and dropped easily for Altenburg.

Their frustration at the final whistle was clear to see. Though their position in second remained safe, and promotion is still more than within their grasp, it is always tough to take when lightning strikes twice.

The views after the game

'Everyone has to question themselves and look for the answers within themselves. It was extremely good last week and we wanted to build on that. Somehow, we always find it easier in our own home than away and we also need to clear up the situation when we conceded the goal better. Now we have enough time to work through everything and hopefully show a better face,' said Anna Weiss after kick-off.

'Even though we weren't able to create any big chances, we could still have scored. Frankfurt closed down the spaces well and we had difficulties getting behind them. We had to make the most of the opportunities we then had, which is something we did really well in the last game. Overall, we lacked intensity and Frankfurt did very well with one move. We have to become more ruthless, but we'll talk about that too. After the international break, we'll bring our full energy back onto the pitch, I'm sure of that,' said head coach Ailien Poese, analyzing the encounter.