IFK Berga 6-0 Räppe GoIF
Thursday 14 Mat, 13:00 kick-off
Swedish regional division 2 Södra Götaland (4th tier)
Bergaviks Idrottsplats, Kalmar
Crowd count: about 90
A short trip to the north side of Kalmar, to see IFK Berga. I have been to this ground many times but not while I have been writing this blog. Berga are back in division 2 after one season downstairs and I was interested to see if they have the potential to stay up this season. They have made a good start with two wins and three draws after nine matches whilst today's visitors, Räppe from Växjö, are second bottom on five points. But it's still early days yet and anything can happen. By the way, Sweden has six divison 2s (72 clubs!) so you can't compare this with countries where this level is a national league.
Berga (pronounced berrya) were founded in 1933 but, apart from one season in division 1 in 2020, have played in the lower levels of Swedish football. Football in Kalmar is totally dominated by Kalmar FF and the other clubs in town are in tier 5 or lower so Berga are the town's second team today. Not that it matters so much since their crowds are seldom more than a couple of hundred.
Räppe are from the west side of Växjö and have never played at a higher level than they do today. I saw a match there a couple of years ago but wasn't blogging then.
If you wonder why a game is played at lunchtime on a Thursday the reason is that it is a public holiday here.
The ground
Basically a fenced off part of a sports complex with several other pitches around it. In one corner there is the clubhouse, changing rooms and kiosk and one the far side a couple of simple wooden stands. No cover at all making it rather exposed to the elements but on a sunny day it's a pleasant place to watch a game. Today's game featured both types of weather - chilly rain in the first half and then sunshine in the second.
Food and drink
Nothing to report really. Usual Swedish selection (hotdogs, coffee, sweets) and friendly volunteer staff.
The match
Berga cruised to a tennis score and showed that they should certainly be able to stay up this time. They took the lead in the 4th minute when Isak Magnusson fired home from close range after a corner on the right. That became 2-0 after 20 minutes when a quick shot from Anton Maikulla found the back of the net. The visitors had a motivation huddle to try and raise their game and managed a few chances at the other end but at half time the score was still 2-0. Berga shifted up a gear in the second and the goals kept coming with a couple of beautiful efforts from Benshi being the pick of the four that went in. The visitors were clearly rattled by their performance and they will have a bit to discuss on the way home. For the hosts though this was an impressive display and puts them in a respectable 6th place in the league.
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