Dhe Frankfurt Lions are currently preparing for the new season of the second German ice hockey league (DEL2). On October 1st, they want to lay the foundation stone for a successful season against EHC Freiburg on the first match day, which in the best case should lead to promotion to the DEL. For this, the new coach Bo Subr and his team actually need every single training session on the ice, because time is of the essence.
Not only is the trainer new, many newcomers have to be integrated. The first test game performances were mixed. “We still have a lot of work ahead of us,” said sports director Franz-David Fritzmeier after the defeat in the last preparatory game in Tilburg. And yet the puck is currently resting in the Frankfurt ice rink. Eight corona cases within the team and the support staff have thwarted the lions’ schedule, the team is in quarantine.
First things first: “Everyone concerned is fine. We have a one hundred percent vaccination quota, which prevented severe progression, ”says managing partner Stefan Krämer. According to Krämer, the lions have ordered the quarantine for the entire team themselves: “We want to protect ourselves and are waiting for feedback from the health department.” Further cases of infection should be avoided. And Fritzmeier also says: “The health of the players comes first.”
The test match against EV Landshut scheduled for last Friday – for the first time since the beginning of the corona pandemic, you could have played in front of your own fans – was therefore canceled. The test planned for this Sunday at the Dresden Ice Hockey Lions is also canceled. “It’s a stupid situation for us. Now would actually be the high phase of the preparation for the season, ”says Fritzmeier. Instead, everything is on hold with the lions. Valuable time to convey his game idea to the partially renewed team is lost to Subr.
Nobody knows when it will continue. However, one is in a constructive exchange with the Frankfurt health department. The sports director praised the communication with the authorities: “They help us”. The situation is also complicated because several health authorities in the Frankfurt area are involved. The Frankfurt Health Department takes on the coordination. Despite the complex situation, the Lions are hoping that they will return to the ice soon – not least because of the quick and responsible action of those in charge of the club.
Whenever you can resume training on Ratsweg – there is not much time left until the first point game. The infected players will then be carefully brought up to the level of the competition, says Fritzmeier: “After getting back into the game, you have another seven days in which you cannot fully train. That makes things even more difficult. ”So the prerequisites could be better, but Fritzmeier doesn’t want to complain:“ We have to make the best of it. ”
If possible, the lions want to play at least one more home game in preparation – also because they finally want to receive spectators in the ice rink again. For a year and a half the club has been missing important income from ticket sales. According to the current status, they should fill about 1,800 spaces again. Too little to cover the entire cost of the season. Krämer hopes that there will be more soon: “In the DEL, 70 to 80 percent utilization of the hall capacities is currently allowed. So we expect more. ”If not, you have to rely on grants in order to survive economically.
Between Corona, the financial situation and the many innovations in the squad, the Lions are facing a season full of uncertainties. Nevertheless, you don’t want to lose sight of your sporting goals: “We want to move up”, says Krämer and adds: “But last Friday you saw how much everything can be planned at the moment”. The Löwen actually wanted to receive EV Landshut for their home game, until not only Franz-David Fritzmeier was reminded: “Corona is not over yet.”
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