The Borussia Dortmund U23s have been held to a 1-1 draw by promoted outfit SV Straelen in the Regionalliga West. Joseph Boyamba equalised for the Black & Yellows in the second half but their opponents held on for a point.

BVB boss Jan Siewert welcomed back several players after spells on the sidelines with injury, with Sören Dieckmann, Herbert Bockhorn and Denzeil Boadu all featuring in the starting XI. Marco Hober also made his first start following two brief substitute appearances, while senior player Dzenis Burnic was involved again.

It took the Black & Yellows around 15 minutes to get a foothold in the game, but after some tentative opening exchanges they pinned the hosts back into their own half and created their first good opportunity on the 17-minute mark when Marco Hober fired wide from the edge of the penalty area. SV Straelen's attacking threat was limited to long-range efforts in the opening stages, and on no occasion was shot-stopper Eric Oelschlägel's goal ever really threatened.

At the other end, Joseph Boyamba created a chance for Sören Dieckmann to open the scoring after half an hour but his effort from around 10 metres out was pushed behind for a corner by Kompalla in goal for the home side. BVB were then forced into making a substitution before the half-time interval, with Dzenis Burnic coming off after being fouled and experiencing back pain. Massimo Ornatelli came on to replace him in central midfield. But before the substitution was made and with only 10 men on the pitch, the hosts went 1-0 ahead and there were no further goals before the break.

Despite being behind, the Black & Yellows showed no signs of being fazed after the restart and almost levelled at 1-1 through Evangelos Pavlidis on the 57-minute mark, although his attempt sailed over the crossbar. But his strike partner Joseph Boyamba finally got the equaliser a minute later, exploiting some carelessness from SV Straelen to slot home what was a deserved leveller. Borussia were now bombarding the home side's goal, pushing them deep into their own half.

BVB could count themselves fortunate to see a Kevin Weggen shot rebound off the woodwork 10 minutes before the end, however, as Eric Oelschlägel didn't stand a chance. It became a very open encounter in the final minutes of the match as both teams strove to pinch a late winner, but three minutes of injury time elapsed without any further goals. For BVB, the draw represented a first point after losing their last two matches. The U23s are next in action as soon as Wednesday, when Jan Siewert's charges play their game in hand against SG Wattenscheid.

BVB U23s: Oelschlägel – Hanke, Rente, Pieper, Dieckmann – Burnic (Ornatelli, 43), Boadu, Hober (Bulut, 73) – Bockhorn (Konate, 85), Pavlidis, Boyamba
Timo Lammert