History: 50 years ago – Promotion season 1974/75 (December)

On a heavy pitch, Jülich take the lead on 17 minutes but going behind fails to upset the Black and Reds at all. Matthias Brücken scores the equaliser five minutes later when he deflects a shot from Helmut Röhrig into the Jülich net. On 30 minutes, coach Manfred Rummel replaces the forward Gerd Kentschke with a defensive midfield player and the Werkself control the game from that point.

In the second half, the pitch carefully tended by groundsman Gustav Schmitz, becomes a mud bath. Two battling teams produced a top match and although the surface made it difficult to shine there were chances for both sides to take the lead. Bayer 04 keeper Hubert Makel had a good day and did not concede in the second half. As the game went on, Bayer 04 kept forcing Jülich back into their own penalty area with the visitors only able to mount rare counter-attacks. At the end there is luck on Leverkusen’s side. On 77 minutes, a cross from Manfred Eickerling finds the head of the tireless Hans-Werner Marx and he surprises the visitors keeper Roland Gühsgen with a header that loops into the far corner. Ten minutes later, substitute Manfred Schumann seals the win. After great work by Helmut Röhrig, the centre forward found the back of the net and the gap of three points to the top of the table again makes the season interesting for the Werkself.

A week later, Bayer 04 were away to fellow promotion rivals SC Brühl. Coach Manfred Rummel fielded the team that finished the game against SC Jülich with Gerd Kentschke and Manfred Schumann also back on the pitch. The team started where they finished off: they gave their all and also played some impressive football on a good surface. Matthias Brücken beats an opponent on 17 minutes and sets up Manfred Schumann to make it 1-0. Then the former Bayer 04 player Horst Wielandt gives away two penalties that sweeper Willi Rehbach converts. The half-time score is 3-0. Brühl pull a goal back at 3-1 in the second half of the game that ends in a richly deserved win for the Werkself.

However, there are rumours in Brühl suggesting the outcome of the game had been manipulated by Leverkusen's football boss Hermann Büchel. Giving a calling card to a Brühl player is not to bribe him but instead is about a job at Bayer AG and Hermann Büchel, who is also employed in purchasing at the works, responds to a question from a journalist: "Why shouldn't I help him?" The only time money was on the agenda on that day was the remaining transfer fee for the former Bayer 04 player Horst Wielandt. Football boss Dr. Jürgen Schwericke called such accusations absurd: "We’re not a tinpot club. I wasn’t in Brühl but I firmly reject those allegations."

The Werkself are due to play two more games before the end of the year but the games fall victim to the weather leaving it tight at the top of the table:

1. Godesberg 08 // 13 games // 19 points // 21:9 goals
2. SC Jülich 10 // 12 games // 17 points // 38:16 goals
3. Bayer 04 Leverkusen // 12 games // 16 points // 28:15 goals
4. SC Nord Köln // 13 games // 16 points // 25:18 goals
5. SC Brühl // 13 games // 16 points // 25:21 goals
6. Bonner SC // 12 games // 15 points // 23:12 goals
7. FC Viktoria Köln // 12 games // 15 points // 16:11 goals

There are more exciting games in 1975. The target of promotion to Bundesliga 2 North requires the Werkself to overcome more rivals than was expected before the start of the season. January certainly packs a punch with five games to play.