SC WESTFALIA HERNE (Stadion am Schloss Strünkede)

OBERLIGA WESTFALEN, SC WESTFALIA HERNE 4-3 SpVgg ERKENSCHWICK, ATTENDANCE: 477

After visiting two grounds in the two previous days that, to be honest, didn't linger long in the memory, today's trip certainly made up for that!

A groundhopping friend of mine says that the halcyon days of "proper" grounds in the upper echelons of German football are fading away as stadia slowly get "modernised".

To find "proper" grounds with character you now have to go lower down the food chain.

The Stadion am Schloss Strünkede is certainly one of those grounds. It is almost a rite of passage in German groundhopping! The ground is absolutely stupendous, with it's vast open terraces and large main stand.

It was constructed in 1910 and has a capacity of 32,000 but SC Westfalia Herne play in the Oberliga Westfalen, which is the fifth tier of German football, though as I write these words SC Westfalia are second bottom of the table, six points from safety.

They secured a much needed victory over local rivals SpVgg Erkenschwick, after coming from behind three times.  

Stefan Oerterer (9) gave Erkenschwick the lead before Dennis Gumpert (12) equalised. Oerterer (32) grabbed his second of the game before Fatmir Ferati (32) pulled Herne level once more. Janos Bluhm (39) restored the visitors lead then, in stoppage time at the end of the half, Sebastian Mützel ensured it was all square at the interval.

Ferati (61) hit home a brilliant free-kick to score what proved to be the winner for Herne.


SC Westfalia Herne's glory days of the 1950's seem a long way off as they battle to remain in the current Oberliga.

They were actually champions of the Oberliga West in 1959, which was one of West Germany's five championships at the time (representing the North, South, West, and Southwest of the country, plus another representing Berlin).

Erkenschwick finished the game
with 10 men as Davide Basile saw red

The Bundesliga was formed for the 1963/64 season but Herne suffered a poor finish in season 1962/63 and were relegated, which resulted in them missing out on a place in the newly formed league. The club, in truth, has been on a downward spiral ever since.


To emphasise how big Herne were back in the 1950's, three players actually represented the German national team whilst playing for Herne, the most notable being Hans Tilkowski, who later played in the 1966 World Cup final. Helmut Benthaus and Alfred Pyka were the others.

Back to the present, today was a great game in a great old stadium. I urge any football fan worth their salt to put a visit to the Stadion am Schloss Strünkede on their "bucket" list right this minute. You will not be disappointed!