Orgryte IS v Hammarby Monday 5th July 2010 Superettan

Monday night saw us visit the Gamla Ullevi to see Orgryte IS host Hammarby in the Superettan. We caught the tram just round the corner from our hotel and on way I spotted the Hammarby fans (known as the Bajen) being escorted to the ground. Very impressive it was too, with plenty of flags banners. We got off the tram with only a short walk to the ground and made our way to the ticket office. As with most of Gothenburg, the lady manning the kiosk spoke English and so we were able to buy our tickets with ease and we made our way into the ground.

The turnstiles are electronic and you put your ticket in the slot and once it has been read you are able to make your way in (although this proved difficult for Mrs Reynard!). Our seats were on the second level and after a couple of photos on the ground level we made our way upstairs. The two side stands are are identical as are the ends, although the end to our right is not finished on the lower level. Interestingly, both lower sections of the ends are terraced and the Bajen are already in position with their numerous flags and banners in position. The stadium is shared by two other Gothenburg clubs, GAIS & IFK Goteborg and all three Club badges are visible around the concourse.

To our right are the Orgryte hardcore who are only just putting their flags and banners out and they are jeered by the Bajen as they do this. I have to say that I am impressed by both sets of fans, adding some colour which I think is lacking at home.

The seats are good and I have plenty of leg room. The game is live on Swedish TV and I do not know if this affects the attendance tonight but there it does not appear to be a very big gate.

We kick off and Hammarby are the better side in the early stages and have several chances to open the scoring but some poor finishing saw the game remain goalless. OIS fought their way back into the game and started to have chances themselves and the game developed into an end to end affair. The best chance of the half fell to Hammarby when a cross from the left found a Hammarby striker with a clear shot on goal but a superb save from Abrahamsson keeps the score level and so we go to half time level at 0-0.

The turning point of the game comes at the beginning of the second half with the introduction of Isak Dahlin into the Hammarby defence wearing number 13! To say he had a mare would be an understatement, a fact backed by the reactions on the Bajen message boards I looked at when I got home. Orgryte come out fast and have Hammarby on the back foot from the kick off. Dahlin looks totally lost and Orgryte seem to sense this and attack him at every opportunity. A defensive clearance by Orgryte evades the whole of the Hammarby defence and Anklev latches onto the ball and narrowly puts it wide. He is not to be denied however and two minutes later he opens the scoring. Orgryte get a corner and the ball is knocked to the far post and headed back across goal. The resulting shot is charged down but the ball runs to Anklev inside the six yard box and he turns and hammers the ball into the net. Two minutes later Orgryte win a free kick on the left and it is swung into the near post where one OIS player misses his header but it it then hits Leinar on his body but hit’s the back of the net. 2-0, game over. Well not quite. On 55 minutes Hammarby attack and a shot from 20 yards out thumps against the OIS post. But six minutes later the points belong to OIS. They win the ball in the centre circle and a great pass out to the right wing sees Evrik latch onto the ball, beat his man and put in a great cross which is met in the middle of the goal by the head of Anklev who scores his second. He does have a chance to complete his hat trick on 85 minutes but he completely mishits his shot and Hopf has a comfortable save to make. The final whistle goes and the OIS faithful celebrate the victory.
I really enjoyed the game and I was impressed by the level of support from both sets of fans during the game. It was also nice to see the OIS players and staff celebrate the victory with their fans on the pitch reminiscent of scenes I’ve seen at the end of games in Germany.

More pictures of the Gamla Ullevi here.

Orgryte IS 3-0 Hammarby
Att: 3,492
Admission: 200Kr (approx. £17.80)
Programme: Free (Covers the whole season- had an insert for today’s game)
Badge: 25Kr (Approx. £2.22)

Qviding FIF v Ytterby IS Sunday 4th July 2010 Division 1 Södra

The blog has landed in Scandanavia! As with any visit to a town or city, I always check out the possibility of visiting a local ground, but with the World Cup still being on I thought my luck in actually seeing a game would be slim. Wrong! A quick check on WorldSoccer.com revealed games on in the Superettan and leagues below. Further research revealed home games for the Gothenburg teams of Qviding FIF and Örgryte IS. Result.
So, on the second day of our trip, I leave Mrs Reynard and Helen and make my way to Valhalla Idrottsplats, home of Qviding. I get off the tram at the Ullevi Stadium and start the walk to the ground, but I notice that people are going into the Ullevi and spotting an open gate I’m soon striding up the steps into the stadium. There is an athletics meeting taking place and so I’m able to take a few shots before carrying on my journey.
It’s a very hot day and the walk seems to take a while, something I’ve noticed always happens when you are not a 100% sure of where you are headed. I arrive at the swimming complex and so I know I’m not far away and I soon spot the floodlights of the ground.

Before going in I decide to have a wander around the outside, so I head down to the corner and down the side of the ground. Not too much to see, but in the distance the Ullevi Stadium is visible and I’m able to get a nice shot of it and the Valhalla.

At the far end you can see back into the ground, with the large seated stand opposite and the terracing I’ve just walked behind. There is a large car park behind this end and beyond that there are people using the open area to play football and do athletics. There is no stand at this end, but there seems to be a complex which I later realise contains the dressing rooms and there appears to be a Clubhouse too.
I make my way back along where I came and return to the entrance and make my way into the ground. I make my way up the steep slope and go to the kiosk at the top behind the main stand, looking for a drink and a badge. I soon realise that the guy behind the kiosk only speaks a little English but I’m able to get a drink fairly easily. The badge is a little harder. Remembering from our Stockholm trip that they call them pins, I ask if they have pins. Total puzzlement from my Swedish friend, but I persevere and show him the badge on the programme and he replies “Ah Pins. Sorry, I don’t have any but I’ll ask around. Can you come back at…….”. He says something in Swedish at this point, so I take a guess and say Half Time. “Yes half time” he replies.
I wander off with my drink and take some more photos. As I make my down the steps I feel a tap on my shoulder. It’s the kiosk man. With a badge. I ask how much I owe him but he tells me nothing. I thank him for his kindness and he’s gone.
I make my way into the seated stand and have a look round the ground. The end I came in has only hard standing behind the goal and you can make your way to the terraced stand opposite where I am sat.
Both the stand I am in and this stand have a curved shape to them and it gives them an interesting look that I have to say I really like as it gives the ground a unique look. The end opposite to where I came in also has hard standing behind it and in the corner is where the teams come out. The seated stand already has a number of people in it ready for the game and I settle down to await the start of the game. I was given a free four page glossy colour programme when I paid my admission and I have a quick look. Not bad for nowt!

I don’t really know what to expect from the game to be honest, what level in comparision to home is hard to tell before hand. The game starts brightly enough and both teams knock the ball around well and there are chances for both early on. Qviding look sharper up front however and it is Qviding that take the lead through Thomas Eriksson on 25 minutes. The game turns Qviding’s way now and they were unlucky not to extend their lead before half time, but the score is 1-0 as the whistle goes.
The second half sees Ytterby start well and they push hard for the equaliser. But their wayward finishing is punished when Eriksson scores his second on 60 minutes. The game swings back to Qviding’s favour and they look good for more goals but only add one more on 72 minutes through Kenan Galijatovic. The game was over but there was some nice football played by both sides and Ytterby got a consolation goal on 90 minutes scored by Robert Vilahmn.
A decent game to watch and a very friendly welcome made it a good afternoon out and not even the appearance of some vuvuzelas could dampen my enjoyment.

More pictures of Valhalla here.

Qviding FIF 3-1 Ytterby IS
Att: 276
Admission: 80Kr (approx. £7.12)
Programme: Free 4 sheet programme
Badge: Free