SVWW narrow defeat to Champions in season finale
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SV Darmstadt will make their first trip to the BRITA-Arena in over five years on the second Sunday of Advent. A lot has happened to the “Lilies” since their last visit. Read our profile of our Hessian neighbours below.
The city: Darmstadt is only about 45 kilometres south-east of Wiesbaden, making it the closest Bundesliga 2 city for the Red & Blacks. In 1997, Darmstadt was awarded the title of City of Science by the Hessian Ministry of the Interior due to its numerous universities, colleges and research institutes. The best-known is probably the Technical University, which is more than 140 years old. Quite how Darmstadt acquired its name is a mystery. The explanation favoured by the inhabitants and local press is that the city – referred to as Darmundestat at the time of its first mention in the 11th century – was named after a ranger called Darimund.
The stadium: Talking of names, the “Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor” was named in part after “Böllen” – the Hessian word for poplar trees, which even now still grow in the area around Darmstadt’s stadium. Furthermore, back in the days when Darmstadt was part of a grand duchy, there was a city gate that could be locked if necessary, hence the “Falltor” (paddle) part of the name. The pharmaceutical and chemicals company Merck acquired naming rights in 2014. Following its recent renovation, the “Böll” can now hold 17,400.
History: The Lilies’ club history began on 22 May 1898 with the founding of FK Olympia Darmstadt, which in 1919 merged with SV Darmstadt to form SV Darmstadt 98. After winning the South German Championship in 1973, Darmstadt qualified for the newly-created Bundesliga 2 at the second attempt – and were then promoted to the top tier of German football for the first time five years later. Further promotions to the Bundesliga followed in 1982 and 2015, but at present SV98 are in their third successive season in the second tier.
The coach: As of 5 December, Dimitrios Grammozis had been head coach at SV Darmstadt 98 for 284 days. The 41-year-old previously coached various youth teams at VfL Bochum before taking up the position with the Lilies in February 2019. Darmstadt finished last season in 10th place in the table under the stewardship of the Wuppertal native, who made 92 appearances for 1. FC Kaiserslautern as a player.
Personnel matters: A total of 16 players left the Hessian second-tier outfit in the summer – including first-choice goalkeeper Daniel Heuer Fernandes, who joined Hamburger SV. To compensate for the loss, SV98 brought in 13 new signings. Fabian Schnellhardt, who will miss the match on Sunday with a muscle fibre tear, arrived in Hesse from relegated outfit MSV Duisburg, while Tim Skarke came from 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 and Marcel Schuhen was signed from SV Sandhausen to fill the vacant goalkeeper position.
Form: The Lilies made a bright start to the new Bundesliga 2 season, drawing 1-1 away at Hamburger SV in their opening game and then picking up their first win of the season over Holstein Kiel at the “Böllenfalltor” next time out. But Matchday 3 marked the start of a seven-match winless streak – although even during that run Darmstadt have consistently picked up a point in their home games this term. Until last weekend that is, when they suffered their first home loss of the campaign against current league leaders Arminia Bielefeld.