Eintracht Norderstedt narrowly lost a thrilling DFB-Pokal first-round match against FC St. Pauli, falling 3-2 in a penalty shootout following a 0-0 draw after extra time. The Regionalliga side, playing on home ground, delivered a spirited performance, particularly through the exceptional goalkeeping of their custodian, who repeatedly denied St. Pauli’s attacking efforts throughout the match.
The first half saw a barrage of 19 shots from St. Pauli, but the Norderstedt goalkeeper proved equal to the task, maintaining the scoreless deadlock at the interval. The pattern continued in the second half, with St. Pauli’s Sinani and Oppie both failing to convert clear chances and a further attempt by Pereira Lange hitting the crossbar.
Norderstedt briefly gained the upper hand in extra time, creating several opportunities, notably a close-range effort from Brendel that narrowly missed the target. St. Pauli’s Vasilj then made a crucial save in the 116th minute, followed by a stop against Ampofo in added time, forcing the match to a penalty shootout.
St. Pauli converted three of their spot-kicks through Oppie, Sinani and Nemeth. Norderstedt’s Gross and Frahm also scored, but misses from Koch, Brendel and Behounek sealed their fate. St. Pauli also saw Wahl and Fujita fail to convert their penalties.
In a separate first-round fixture, FV Illertissen secured a remarkable victory over 1. FC Nürnberg, winning 6-5 in a penalty shootout after a 3-3 draw in regulation time.
