Successful dress rehearsal: a week before the opening competitive match of 2024, the Borussia Dortmund women's footballers won 10-3 (2-2) away to Landesliga team Rot-Weiß Oberhausen. It was the first victory in their third preparation match of the year.

The Dortmund ladies travelled away for a very special occasion. The home team, the RWO women, were playing at Stadion Niederrhein for the first time. Borussia made the better start in the constant drizzling rain and immediately gained control of the match, with two long-range efforts from Lisa Gomulka firing them into an early 2-0 lead (11, 16). The Black & Yellows failed to convert further opportunities and were ruthlessly punished before the break. Liana Liepa (41) and Tamina Gähler (43) took advantage of two moments of defensive carelessness to restore parity.

The second period was only 38 seconds old by the time Borussia were back in front again, Mia Macarena Bedarf heading home a cross from Lea Auffenberg at the back post. Carolin Kaul re-established the two-goal advantage in the 52nd minute when she followed up on a saved shot by Bedarf and slotted into the back of the net. The BVB women were now in a frenzied mood and the goals came by the minute: Bedarf from long range (54) and Danelle Tan, who scored from a Groethe cross (55), upped the advantage to 6-2. But RWO were also involved in the goal frenzy and reduced the deficit to 6-3 through Liepa (56). 

After five goals in the space of 10 minutes, the approximately 300 spectators at Stadion Niederrhein could take a breath. It was only in the final phase of the match that the Black & Yellow dominance translated into goals once again, with the BVB supporters celebrating four times within five minutes. A Grothe brace (81/84) and goals from Kimberly Becker (83) and Bedarf (86) complete the 10-3 victory. "The large pitch worked in our favour today. We were in the game from the first minute, built up a lot of pressure in the second half and scored some nice goals from out wide," said coach Thomas Sulewski.

The BVB women will play their first competitive match of the year this coming Saturday, 10 February. Sulewski's charges will be away to Bezirksliga side Rot Weiß Ahlen in the Westfalenpokal quarter-final. Kick-off at the Südenkampfbahn is at 15:00 CET.

BVB-Frauen: Jäger – Auffenberg (Naceva, 69), Jung (Haslsteiner, 64), Haslsteiner (Glänzer, 32), Klemann (Jung, 80) – Becker (Tan, 32) – Naceva (Geldschläger, 46), Gomulka (Becker, 64), Grothe, Bedarf – Reinhardt (Kaul, 46)

Goals: 0-1 Gomulka (11), 0-2 Gomulka (16), 1-2 Liepa (41), 2-2 Gähler (43), 2-3 Bedarf (46), 2-4 Kaul (52), 2-5 Bedarf (54), 2-6 Tan (55), 3-6 Liepa (56), 3-7 Grothe (81), 3-8 Becker (83), 3-9 Grothe (84), 3-10 Bedarf (86) 

(df)