Bruneck coach Roberto Fuschini is autumn champion. But this title means relatively little to him. © D. Laner

This is what the Landesliga coaches think about the first half of the season

The first half of the regional league is over. SSV Bruneck has been crowned autumn champions. But the competition is hot on the heels of the Pustertal team. We spoke to some coaches and reviewed the autumn season.

09 December 2024

From: cst

With a strong 36 points from 15 games, Bruneck has snatched the autumn championship title. Roberto Fuschini's team has been chasing promotion to the Oberliga for years. This year it could work out, the starting position couldn't be better.

"We are very happy with what we have achieved. But the autumn championship title counts for little. What is more important is how the table looks in May," says Bruneck coach Roberto Fuschini, not wanting to rest on his laurels from the first half of the season. Bruneck not only has the third best defense (15 goals conceded), but above all by far the best attack. Thomas Piffrader & Co. hit the target 39 times. That is 9 goals more than Val Gardena (30). "We have always had a lot of chances in recent years. The difference this year is that we are using them more efficiently. But we are also conceding one or two more goals," says Fuschini.

His players now have one day off until January 11th. There is a day of skiing on the agenda before training begins two days later. The goals for the second half of the season are almost self-explanatory: "To win, everything has to come together. It will be a great battle for the title in the spring. Naturns, Ahrntal and Gröden have great quality. However, I have to say that this is the best team I have trained in my eight years at Bruneck." The young Fabian Leimegger will be loaned to Reischach for the second half of the season.

Ahrntal as the first pursuer

Closest on Bruneck's heels is SSV Ahrntal. Thomas Ritsch took over as coach there in the summer and has made a lot of changes. "If you change a lot, you make yourself vulnerable. But everything has worked. The new arrivals have also been a real hit," says Ritsch. Ahrntal has the best defense in the league, having conceded 11 goals: "One of the club's instructions was that the defense had to be better. The fact that we conceded so few goals was certainly a main reason for the many points."

Noah Gietl has made a great impression at SSV Ahrntal.

In terms of the squad, not much will change at Ahrntal. Only Julian Niederkofler is returning from a long injury break. Training starts on January 9th. Until then, it's all about switching off, says Ritsch: "It's good for most of them to clear their heads." But then the Teldra have a lot planned. "We'll step on the gas. A really tough second half of the season awaits us. Maybe we'll manage to cause a surprise in the fight for first or second place."

More than half of the regional league in the relegation battle

The icing on the cake in the regional league will be the relegation battle in the spring. No one can feel safe until Gitschberg Jochtal (6th place). "It's going to be a really hairy story," says Christian Pixner. The Latsch coach and his team have 20 points. "We are not dissatisfied because three important pillars were lost in the summer. I think the points we got are OK."

“It couldn’t be more balanced” Christian Pixner on the balance sheet of his Latscher

Latsch has a completely balanced record: 5 wins, 5 draws, 5 losses and a goal difference of 21:21. There have been minor changes to the squad. David Pitigoi is out for study reasons, but Argentinian offensive player Matias Lunari is returning after a cruciate ligament tear. "Maybe something will happen. But no major transfers are planned," said Pixner, who will start training on January 9th.

Martin Saltuari (here next to assistant coach Peter Mair) draws a mixed conclusion from the first half of the season.

SV Lana has collected 2 points less than Latsch. The relegated team from the Oberliga completely reorganized itself in the summer. This was noticeable, analyzes coach Martin Saltuari: "We are the youngest team in the league and have had to keep improvising. Due to minor injuries, the team was never able to find its feet and therefore lacked consistency." Saltuari also believes that the points yield could be better: "Not entirely satisfactory, and we also conceded too many goals." For the second half of the season, Lana has set itself the goal of collecting more points than in the autumn: "The first 4 teams are playing their own championship. The rest are completely balanced. We want to do better than in the first half of the season and make sure that we don't slip back."

Kiens struggles with exploiting opportunities

SV Kiens is already behind. The Pusterer team is in third-to-last place. "13 points from 15 games is simply not enough. There is no way to sugarcoat it," says Kiens coach Stefan Putzer self-critically. Away from home in particular (only 2 points) we didn't achieve much, but there is room for improvement at home too. "We are one of the better teams in terms of playing, but we simply missed far too many chances. If you constantly forget to score goals, your confidence will eventually suffer." With only 18 goals, Kiens has the weakest attack in the regional league - together with bottom-placed Riffian Kuens. Despite this, there have been no personnel changes. "The squad is strong enough, we have the necessary quality. If everyone gives their all, then we will manage to stay in the league," says Putzer combatively.

“Martin Ritsch scored 8 goals, but the strikers didn’t do enough.” Stefan Putzer, coach SV Kiens on the attack misery

Training begins on January 7th. Training will take place in St. Lorenzen and Dietenheim in the winter, and training will not be possible on the natural grass pitch at home. Kiens will also have to play its first home games “away”. The aim is for the games to take place in St. Lorenzen. For Putzer, it is clear what will make the difference in the end: “Whoever wins the direct duels will manage to stay in the league.”

Landesliga: The first half of the season table