Over Land and Sea

The Saint spoke to master’s student Alex Gerhardt about his epic voyage to support his local football team.

The heatmap of the average St Andrews student over the now rebranded ‘Spring Break’ resembles that of an invincibles-era Patrick Vieira. Whether a lads’ trip to Krakow or a romantic Parisian get away, the mass exodus of undergrads come the end of week five is biblical. 

Rather than cramming his flip-flops into a Ryanair-approved rucksack, IR master’s student, Alex Gerhardt, set his sights on the German industrial city of Gelsenkirchen.

“I looked at the schedule over the break and saw we had a game against Schalke,” Gerhardt recounted his epic voyage to support his beloved Preußen Münster. “I had class the day before but was determined to get to the game.” 

Alex comes from near Münster, a city in North-Rhine Westphalia most famous for its impressive cathedral. The cages that held the mutilated corpses of Protestant dissidents still hang from the Lambertikirche today — well worth a google for any fans of sixteenth-century religious violence. 

After stomaching the dreaded 6am Edinburgh Airport take off and enduring various regional trains, Gerhardt made it in time for kick-off at the Veltins-Arena — the scene of that Jude Bellingham bicycle kick as England fans will fondly remember. 

“There were seven legs to my journey, but I made it in the end. That must be some kind of record.” For someone who struggles to make it to the Sports Centre in time for Tuesday night six-a-side, this is an impressive feat.

 “Last season, I made it to almost every away game,” the 22-year-old juggled studying at the University of Münster with travelling the lengths of Germany in what was a promotion-winning season for ‘Die Adler’. 

It’s been much harder for Gerhardt to support his team since moving to the UK. “I’ve asked some of the pubs here if they’ll show the games, but they only seem to play the top leagues.” Fife’s appetite for second-division European football is somewhat limited.

He’s been forced to improvise, bringing the matchday experience to his student flat. “I buy cheap beer from Aldi and some plastic cups and watch the game at home on my laptop. It’s the closest I can get to feeling like I’m in the stadium.”

There have been some memorable moments for the Preußen fan this season. “Over the winter break, I went to the game against Hertha BSC at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, the third biggest stadium in Germany. We won, and afterwards, the team came out and celebrated with us.”

Gerhardt has enjoyed his share of Scottish Premiership action since coming to St Andrews. “I went to watch Dundee with a friend from Germany,” he tells me about his trip to Dens Park, home of the mighty Dee. “The atmosphere was quite different. There is more of a chanting culture back home.” 

The so-called 50+1 rule in Germany means that all clubs in the top two divisions are majority fan-owned, giving fans greater control over important areas of administration like ticket pricing. “Even at Bayern Munich, you can buy a standing ticket for about fifteen euros. It brings in a different crowd of people, which has a positive impact on the atmosphere.” 

More disturbing to Alex was the lack of alcoholic beverages at the ground. “I was a bit shocked that there was no beer in the stadium.” Dundee’s electrifying brand of football seemingly not intoxicating enough for the young German. 

As anyone who has watched Danny Dyer’s 2007 masterpiece ‘Football Hooligans International’ will tell you, football fanaticism transcends borders. Although not a hooligan, Alex Gerhardt’s commitment to his team goes well beyond your average armchair punter. The promise of a white sand beach and a strawberry daiquiri was never going to lure the Preußen Münster fanatic from a juicy away day.