Austria reach Cup final after 2-0 win!

In the semi-final of the SPORTLAND Niederösterreich Women's Cup, the Violets won 2-0 away at FC Bergheim and advanced to the final! Verena Volkmer scored a brace to send Austria to Wiener Neustadt, where the grand final against SKN St. Pölten (4-2 vs. Vienna) will take place at the end of May.

It was clear even before the game started that Bergheim would be a challenging opponent. The Salzburg side had yet to lose on home turf this season. The Violets therefore knew that the match would not be an easy one. However, the dominance of the visitors from Vienna was clearly evident right from the start.

Olsen delivers chance after chance

The first dangerous move came in the 17th minute from Maria Olsen, who narrowly missed the target with a long-range shot. She had another great chance just a minute later, but the FC Bergheim goalkeeper was able to keep the ball out with her fingertips. The subsequent corner also went wide of the goal (18').

The Violets continued to create good chances. In the 20th minute, Olsen took another long-range shot, but the ball went just wide of the goal. Austria Vienna repeatedly proved dangerous from set-pieces, especially from corners, but failed to score.

Volkmer with a (almost familiar) brace

With just under 30 minutes played, the Viennese side had another opportunity when the ball flew straight into the hands of the opposing goalkeeper after a corner kick from Olsen (28'). But the big moment came shortly afterwards. Bergheim conceded a penalty for the Violets through a handball in the penalty area. Verena Volkmer stepped up and converted safely to make it 1-0 for the Violets (34')!

Shortly before half-time, it was the captain again who made it 2-0 for Austria with a lob (45'). They went into the half-time break with a comfortable lead.

No more goals in the second half

The Viennese side continued to dominate in the second half. Louise Schöffel delivered a cross, but the FC Bergheim defence was well positioned and was able to clear (58'). Olsen had another opportunity in the 61st minute when she had a clear run on goal, but her shot went over.

Despite the Violets' efforts to score another goal, the final 20 minutes of the game remained quiet. Neither team created any more chances worth mentioning. In the 86th minute, FC Bergheim tried once more to get on the scoresheet with a long-range shot, but the Violets' goalkeeper Larissa Haidner made a superb save.

In the end, the Violets secured their place in the cup final with a deserved 2-0 victory. This will take place at the end of May in Wiener Neustadt. On Sunday, SKN St. Pölten followed Austria into the final after beating Vienna 4-2.

FC Bergheim - Austria Wien 0-2 (0-2)

Austria: Haidner - Wenninger, Schiechtl, Kirchberger - Schöffel, Weilharter, Pavlović (Schneeberger 66'), Schorn (Satra 66') - Olsen (Ziletkina 79'), Bruinenberg (Moser 87') - Volkmer ©

Goals: Volkmer (34', 45')

Yellow cards: Schirmbrand (42'), Gragger (71'); Schöffel (84')

AVZ-Arena Bergheim, referee Daniel Steuber