In the duel with Waldhof Mannheim
©IMAGO
As a result of a firecracker thrown in the third division game between Rot-Weiß Essen and Waldhof Mannheim, RWE has to do without its goalkeeper Felix Wienand for the time being. “Felix Wienand is currently unable to play due to a blast he suffered, accompanied by significant hearing loss. The trigger for this was the extremely loud detonation of a firecracker in the 52nd minute of the third division game against SV Waldhof Mannheim in the stadium on Hafenstrasse, which can clearly be assigned to the guest block,” says a club statement. The police are now investigating the alleged perpetrator. The control committee of the German Football Association (DFB) has also initiated an investigation and asked the Mannheim team to comment.
In the 52nd minute, Wienand fell to his knees in front of the Mannheim fan block after a loud bang in his penalty area, covered his ears and was then led into the dressing room in a daze. He was later taken to hospital. “He’s really not feeling well,” said Essen coach Uwe Koschinat after the game. Referee Lennart Kernchen interrupted the game for 45 minutes when the score was 1-0 for Essen. Essen’s substitute goalkeeper Tino Casali then came into play for Wienand. In the end it remained 1-0 for the hosts, for whom Marek Janssen scored in the 31st minute. The Essen club statement also states that the game continued and was played to the end “contrary to Rot-Weiss Essen’s expectations”.
After an incident at RWE: investigations into dangerous bodily harm
The Essen police announced on Thursday that they had identified a 50-year-old German from Ludwigshafen am Rhein as a suspect and processed him for identification purposes. The man was released after police measures were completed. He is being investigated for grievous bodily harm and causing an explosive explosion. The DFB announced that after receiving the special report from the referee and the safety observer, the control committee initiated an investigation and asked the club to comment.
“Firecracker detonations have no place in the football stadium,” said SV Waldhof. We wish Wienand a “good and quick recovery”. During the game, there were several incidents such as pyrotechnics, fireworks and detonations throughout the entire stadium area, the Mannheimers explained. The players of both teams were “under the constant influence of those actions throughout the entire season”.
The scene with Wienand was “a single firecracker set off in the last row of the visitors’ stand.” Regardless of this, we expressly condemn “any form of improper handling of pyrotechnics and especially firecrackers,” wrote the Mannheimers. “Such actions endanger people, damage football and contradict the values that our club stands for.” They want to continue to work through the events together with the responsible authorities and the organizer and examine possible consequences. Wienand RWE will be missing from the duel with TSG Hoffenheim’s U23s on Saturday.
