It was a lively start befitting of a fixture of this magnitude, and the heavy challenges began to fly in from the very first moment.
Alexander Rossing-Lelesiit was forced off after just 12 minutes after being on the receiving end of one from Adam Dzwigala, before Bakery Jatta called Nikola Vasilj into action for the game’s first chance, despite being offside in the process.
It was a similar situation for Damion Downs minutes later, meaning Hamburg had to wait until first-half stoppage time to register their first official shot, despite largely dominating a cagey opening 45 minutes.
The first half didn’t bring any fireworks on the pitch, but the interval certainly did in the stands. Red and blue smoke lingered over each end of the field and met in the middle, symbolic of what this fixture means to a divided city.
Kick-off was thus heavily delayed, but the shackles were off when it finally came. St Pauli’s higher line allowed their opponents more freedom in attack, resulting in a smattering of chances including Luka Vuskovic’s header from close range, which was stopped well by Vasilj.
The cautious play continued after that chance, but important changes for both sides threatened to spice up the final 20 minutes.
One of those was Danel Sinani, who fired goalward and forced a diving save from Daniel Heuer Fernandes, the first time the visitors’ goalkeeper had been called upon in the game.
St Pauli, spurred on by a reinvigorated home crowd, followed that with more opportunities in the final minutes, but ultimately neither team was able to hit what would have been a famous late winner.
The result isn’t the ideal one for either side, though St Pauli can at least celebrate that they move up to the relegation playoff spot ahead of the rest of the weekend’s results.
Hamburg’s five-match winless league run continues, but they still keep their record of never having lost a Bundesliga match at the Millerntor.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Luka Vuskovic (Hamburg)
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