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Agency Report –
Bochum goalkeeper Patrick Drewes was hit by a lighter thrown by an Union fan in the 1-1 draw late last year. A hearing last week handed Bochum a 2-0 win instead given they had used all their substitutes so an outfield player had to go in goal, with Drewes unable to continue.
The lighter incident happened very late in the game and Union were furious by the ruling, calling it “a scandal.” They are appealing so Bochum’s extra two points and Union’s tweaked tally have not officially been applied in the table and other clubs hope it will never come to pass.
“Of course, you have to question the extent to which the judgement interferes with the integrity of the competition. Uninvolved clubs are of course affected by this judgement. It’s something we’re looking at closely,” St Pauli president Oke Göttlich told Sky.
The president of Heidenheim expressed a similar view.
“It’s about football and it’s not a good judgement for football. We’re already thinking about at least taking a public stand on it. I don’t think it’s good. I don’t know whether there will be further legal steps,” said Holger Sanwald.
Hoffenheim sporting director Andreas Schicker would also have preferred a different judgement.
“For me, such situations should not be allowed to interfere with sport. I’m thinking of closing stands or imposing games behind closed doors, but ultimately that shouldn’t interfere with the sport,” he said.
Sports law expert Thomas Summerer rates Union’s appeal chances as slim, with the other clubs unlikely to join the appeal due to legal complexities.
“I understand that it hurts when you lose points in this way, but this is established case law,” Summerer told Deutschlandfunk radio.
