Bayern II Edges Nürnberg II, Sits Atop Regionalliga

It's been a few weeks since we last checked in with FC Bayern's reserve side, boringly called Bayern II. In that time, the Red Reserves have been on a good run of form, showing their superiority over most opponents in the Regionalliga Bayern. Today, the reserve side fought out a gritty 1-0 victory over Nürnberg II ("Der Club Klein"). Bayern went ahead in the 76th minute through Lukas Grill, and gamely fought off several late Nürnberg II attacks to seal the win.

Bayern II's win leaves the reserve side undefeated after 9 matches so far this season. Although 5 of the 9 matches have ended in draws, the total is still good enough for a share of first place in the Bavarian Regional League. Bayern II, this same Nürnberg II side, and Illertissen are all level on 17 points. The Red Reserves' next 3 matches are against relatively punchless TSV Buchbach, VfL Frolach, and Eintracht Bamberg, so there's a good chance the side could be undefeated in their first dozen. If that happens, it would set up a huge match-up against Illertissen on September 24.

I can't find any video footage yet of today's win over Nürnberg II, but below is a good bit of the "Junior Derby" that took place 2 weeks ago. Bayern II emphatically beat 1860 II by a 2-0 score-line:

A few things to notice:

- I believe that's Mehmet Scholl on the Bayern II bench (which is to say, in the plastic chair). But I can't be sure. Isn't that what he looks like?

- The side grandstands are empty, but either curve is packed with fans. For a Regionalliga match, this is pretty well attended (probably beats most Serie B matches ... hell, wouldn't surprise me if some Serie A matches get similar numbers this season).

- Looks like it may have been Patrick Weihrauch (#11) with the smooth bottom-corner strike to seal the win at about 1:50 of the video clip. Granted, the 1860 II defense lost track of him, but he still had to show an accurate stroke and put it right on that spot.

- Towards the end, the 1860 II manager gives an interview, and in the background are some dude playing with a laptop and a little kid eating a plate of ice cream. Did they do this interview at his house, or are those guys just hanging around the facility?

- The 1860 II manager kinda looks like me.

The ultimate hope of the season would be to get promote to the 3. Liga. Not that there's anything wrong with Die Regionalligen, but taking a step up would allow some of the reserve guys to routinely play against better competition. And, if and when any of them make the move to the senior side, the jump probably wouldn't be as terrible coming from the 3. (although it's still a big step up to the 1. Bundesliga, the speed of the game probably wouldn't be as shocking).

Unfortunately, though, the 2 guys we've resolved to keep an eye on, Dale Jennings and Toni Vastic, haven't been doing much. From what I can tell, Jennings has only come on twice, both times as a substitute. Vastic has seen a little more action, playing in about half of the matches, but he has also failed to find his scoring touch. In fact, this Weihrauch kid is starting to look more promising. He got some minutes with the German U18 squad, and he seems to have good vision and very reliable touch on the ball. Obviously, we're talking about long-term, down the road possibilities, but we'll be keeping an eye on him.

As always, if you have personal knowledge or want to correct or expand upon anything we've written here, leave it in the comment section. Back with the SpVgg G-F preview tomorrow or Friday. Thanks for reading.