In front of a full house, the match develops into a battle with Preußen taking a 2-0 lead into half-time. In the second half, the Werkself push the opponents back into their own half. Centre forward Helmut Lasser and midfield maestro Richard Job deservedly level with goals on 52 and 68 minutes. Less than seven minutes after the equaliser at 2-2, a Dellbrück defender saves the ball on the line with his hand. Richard Job puts the penalty wide of the target. A real blow seven minutes later: Preußen centre forward Schmidt scores his third goal to keep the title race alive.
Despite this 3-2 defeat, Bayer 04 end the season as champions of the Rhine District League 1 but lose out in the play-off for promotion to the First Oberliga West over two legs against FC Köln. Leverkusen are members of the newly established Second Oberliga West from the 1949/50 season
The images clearly show how important football was to people over 70 years ago. The crowds are on the edge of the pitch and with the missed penalty you can see spectators standing on the pitch next the goal, one with a camera in his hand. You can almost feel the passionate atmosphere at the Preußen stadium…
Dieter Bast was born in Oberhausen on 28 August 1951. He began playing football in the youth team at DJK Arminia Klosterhardt, a local club in Oberhausen. Whilst training as a toolmaker, he moved to neighbouring club Sterkrade 06/07 to play for their U19s, where he caught the eye of Bundesliga sides Rot-Weiss Essen and Borussia Mönchengladbach. Bast opted for Rot-Weiss and played in the Bundesliga from 1970 onwards. In his very first year, he made 22 appearances as a right winger, scoring three goals. Nevertheless, Essen were unable to avoid relegation.
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José Vítor Roque Júnior was born on 31 August 1976 in Santa Rita do Sapucaí, in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. As a youth, he played for São José EC, a club in the east of the state of São Paulo. His professional career began in 1995 with Palmeiras São Paulo. There, Roque Júnior quickly established himself as a key player in the team, making more than 200 appearances and enjoying significant success. With the club, he won the Copa do Brasil in 1998 and the Copa Libertadores in 1999, the South American equivalent of the European Champions League.
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In this video you can see impressive and important goals in the history of Bayer 04 from the month of August. It's not always about the beauty of the goals, but also a reminder of special games and players.
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The Werkself play their first top-flight match in Bayer 04’s history away at Sportfreunde Katernberg. 7,000 spectators turn up at the Am Lindenbruch stadium in that district of Essen. The Katernbergers have transformed the once ‘barren’ pitch into a real gem. On this Sunday afternoon, 19 August 1951, the lush turf provides the perfect conditions for a good game of football.
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Following a thoroughly successful start with a 2–1 home win against VfL Wolfsburg, the Werkself are organising a team event. On Wednesdays, they head to the Nürburgring together and do a few laps at speed. Manager Klaus Toppmöller welcomes this initiative, as it promotes team spirit and integration. During weekly training sessions, the team works extensively on various defensive tactics, as the manager was dissatisfied with his players’ pressing in the final minutes of the match against the Wolves.
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