Werder’s press director Tino Polster has once again opted to present us with an intrusive look into the world of Werder Bremen. During the clubs training camp on Norderney, Polster will keep a diary of the events on the island and present them on www.werder.de. The latest Green-White news, detailed information and fun anecdotes surrounding Thomas Schaaf and his men will appear daily.
Wednesday, 04.07.2007, 7:20am, Golf Hotel Norderney
24 men and one task – off for some early morning sport. But one look in the faces of the gathered pose would instantly reveal how throwing the blankets back over their heads would be the favoured option this morning. No can do!! Up on the bikes and across the dunes to the beach and then jogging. Four kilometres westwards and back again. The tide is in their favour this week, low water and a tightly packed, dry underfoot of sand – perfect for running on.
Essentially it’s a beautiful morning – clear, fresh air, but the players are not exactly relishing the ‘Torture of Norderney’. There is little passion for the island or the programme being served up whilst here. After the eight kilometre run, Clemens Fritz was the only one to add an extra 100 meters – and that was just to cool his feet off in the water, whilst the rest flopped down on the ‘White Dunes’, as this area is known.
On returning to the Golf Hotel, the breakfast room was quickly filled. Cornflakes, fruit salad, yogurt, eggs, bread rolls, coffee, milk, juice and the morning papers. The press group which has been following our programme has grown. For the first time the guys from the ‘Nordsee Zeitung’ from Bremerhaven are here, as well as the ‘Hamburger Morgen Post’ representatives. Radio Bremen has sent a camera team who will cover the fifth anniversary of the ‘Werder-Fanclub-Norderney’. “I always watch ‘Sportblitz’ and what was on today, a report about Klose and Bayern but nothing about Werder. Unbelievable!!”, complained a frustrated fan. To the defence of the t.v. channel, they have been with us here for two days and are gathering material to make a larger presentation of our time here.
Our Norderney fans will be particularly delighted when they get to see the pictures of their anniversary celebration on television. Klaus Allofs, Wolfgang Rolff and I paid the fan club members a visit in their local ‘Um Süd’ and had lots of questions to answer. The ‘K’-word crept up quite regularly but on the whole the general opinion is that the right decision was made.
WFC Norderney boasts over 50 members now: “We have trebled in size over the last five years”, glowed chair-person Monika Vißer. The interest in Werder was clear to see as some 500 onlookers turned up to view the 11am training session, this included a complete school load of kids from Upgant-Schott’ who had travelled over on a school trip from the mainland. Just for Werder!! Green-White hearts beat on powerfully in East Frisia.
Although the players would have liked nothing more, after ninety minutes of intense action on the trainings pitch, than a shower and some lunch, they all went directly to the fans at the fences to sign some autographs – time for a midday nap, much awaited by all players and totally necessary as at 5pm the ‘Torture of Norderney’ begins the next phase. Summer could be a lot better than this, a lot warmer anyway. But it’s not all bad, at least it’s not raining.
Johnnie Muldoon