RLC Bastogne 5-1 Sibret
Luxembourg Provincial Cup
Stade des Récollets
10 August 2014
A very rare trip to Luxembourg Province for some football and the extraordinary little town of Bastogne. Well, to be honest it was a visit to the wonderful nearby museum covering the incredible events in and around this town at the end of the Second World War (the Battle of the Bulge). I admit to be fairly ignorant of the details of WWII, and it was an eye opener to me that so many young Americans fought so hard to protect this little town none would ever have heard of before, and what a pivotal part of the end of the war this was.
The fact that the local side were playing at 5pm on a Sunday was an added bonus. The ground is dominated by the side terrace that provides the only cover. This was handy given the game ended in a monsoon, with the floodlights on at 6:30pm in August!
The game started with a goal after about 10 seconds and, with the home side getting a second not long after, we awaited the goal avalanche. To the credit of the visitors they got back in the game and were hunting an unlikely equaliser before the home team pulled away with 3 late goals.
I had been told that the standard in the province is not as good as in, say, Antwerp province, and this was all too clear to see. But to be fair, although being larger area wise than any other province (and in fact the Grand Duchy itself!!) the population of the province is a mere 250k. The provincial league is a 10 division pyramid with 140 clubs. On top of this there are 5 Luxembourg teams in the national leagues. So that is 250k people and 145 clubs......wow!!
Bizarrely the game ended with a penalty shoot out. Seeing this as we ran to the car in the rain, we sought cover in the bar and watched as players and goalies alike literally ran throughout and, with players racing back to the changing room when they had taken their shot. We learnt that this happens at every cup game in the province as a way to settle ties in the qualifying table. For the record the visitors won 3-2.
I left wet, but determined I would no longer be a stranger to this wonderful part of the country.
The fact that the local side were playing at 5pm on a Sunday was an added bonus. The ground is dominated by the side terrace that provides the only cover. This was handy given the game ended in a monsoon, with the floodlights on at 6:30pm in August!
The game started with a goal after about 10 seconds and, with the home side getting a second not long after, we awaited the goal avalanche. To the credit of the visitors they got back in the game and were hunting an unlikely equaliser before the home team pulled away with 3 late goals.
I had been told that the standard in the province is not as good as in, say, Antwerp province, and this was all too clear to see. But to be fair, although being larger area wise than any other province (and in fact the Grand Duchy itself!!) the population of the province is a mere 250k. The provincial league is a 10 division pyramid with 140 clubs. On top of this there are 5 Luxembourg teams in the national leagues. So that is 250k people and 145 clubs......wow!!
Bizarrely the game ended with a penalty shoot out. Seeing this as we ran to the car in the rain, we sought cover in the bar and watched as players and goalies alike literally ran throughout and, with players racing back to the changing room when they had taken their shot. We learnt that this happens at every cup game in the province as a way to settle ties in the qualifying table. For the record the visitors won 3-2.
I left wet, but determined I would no longer be a stranger to this wonderful part of the country.