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Once again this year, the traditional Harting Apprentice Cup on 19.01.2024 in Espelkamp had full stands and thrilling matches to offer. As one of 12 regional teams, the Kesseböhmer trainees also went on the hunt for goals and impressed not only with their fine feet, but also with their great sporting spirit.
This year's cross-gender and cross-apprenticeship team was made up of a total of ten apprentices from six different trades. The team coached by Lukas Klußmann and Nils Sieksmeyer consisted of David Kurowski, Arda Topcu, Hauke Meyer, Gianna Di Meo, Thejs Krieger, Christopher Gahl, Colin Schichta, Max Huge, Kevin Peters and Mathis Krause.
In the first game, the Merkur Group (formerly Gauselmann) team, the winner of the last two tournaments and therefore an absolute heavyweight at the Azubi Cup, awaited our team. Our team found it difficult to get into the game against the strong Espelkampers and quickly fell behind, from which they were unable to recover despite a valiant fight - in the end it was five-nil for Merkur.
After a pep talk from coach Lukas Klußmann, the second game was the eagerly awaited "Kitchen Classic" against our friends from Häcker in Rödinghausen. Once again, the Kesseböhmer team started the game nervously and conceded an early goal. After falling behind, however, a noticeable jolt went through the team and there was a clear improvement in performance on the pitch. Kesseböhmer turned the game around with beautifully executed goals from Thejs Krieger, Arda Topcu, David Kurowski and Hauke Meyer to record an important four-two victory in the battle to progress.
After their success against Häcker, they now had the opportunity to secure their place in the quarter-finals with another win in the final group match against the team from Sparkasse Minden-Lübbecke. The hitherto winless bankers put up a strong fight for a long time and were able to keep the game evenly balanced. However, our team kept attacking, defended the few attempts to counterattack with concentration and was able to rely on its goalkeeper Kevin Peters as a reliable back-up. As Sparkasse's strength waned at the end, the Kesseböhme team struck coldly and secured their place in the next round with a three-nil victory. Max Huge, Mathis Krause and Thejs Krieger again scored the goals.
The following quarter-final brought our team a reunion with an old acquaintance. IMA Schelling, who had also qualified for the quarter-finals as runners-up in their group behind the host team Harting, had already produced some exciting duels in the last two editions of the Azubi Cup. This time, the Lübbecker team came out on top, deservedly winning the game 4:0 and advancing to the final as the tournament progressed.
By reaching the quarter-finals, our team was able to confirm last year's success and was rightly celebrated by its fans in the stands afterwards for its strong tournament performance. They were also deservedly named the fairest team for their exemplary behavior on and off the pitch.
We would like to congratulate the eventual tournament winners Wortmann, who beat IMA Schelling in a penalty shoot-out in the final, and thank Harting for their excellent organization and hospitality. We would also like to praise our trainees for their hard work, Lukas Klußmann and Nils Sieksmeyer for looking after the team and all the fans who came along for the great support.
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