RW Essen and the BVB U23s contested an entertaining game in front of 14,497 fans at the Hafenstraße in Essen on the opening day of the Regionalliga season. It was the hosts who eventually prevailed, scoring in stoppage-time to secure a 2-1 triumph.

The pre-match scenario: Borussia Dortmund went into their opening match in confident mood, having suffered only one defeat throughout pre-season. Coach Mike Tullberg's charges had performed convincingly and shown their strength in depth in summer friendlies against the likes of Meppen and Münster. But RWE had only lost one match in pre-season themselves, with their final summer friendly against Kickers Offenbach last week ending in a 2-2 draw.

The personnel: Mike Tullberg had almost a full squad at his disposal, with Haymenn Bah-Traore the only injury absentee in Essen. Tullberg stuck with the tried-and-tested back four from pre-season with Bünning and Rente at the heart of defence, while the trio of Führich, Tigges and Boyamba lined up in attack.

The first half: BVB made a brave start to the opening half, dominating possession for long spells and not letting themselves be intimidated by the opposition or the setting. The first moment of danger in the Essen box occurred after a corner-kick on the six-minute mark. Essen failed to clear the danger and Mory Konate subsequently hit the post – although he was offside and it wouldn't have counted anyway. Coach Mike Tullberg was satisfied with the opening minutes and showed his approval with several bursts of applause for his players.

The Black & Yellows kept their focus at the back following the first drinks break, but they were slightly unlucky going forward. The hosts held firm and kept things very compact around their penalty area. On the 26-minute-mark, BVB shot-stopper Eric Oelschlägel was forced into action for the first time but the goalkeeper was comfortably able to deal with a shot from Dennis Grote. The men from Essen grew into the game at this point and had BVB pinned back into their own half for a while. It was during this period of pressure that Joseph Boyamba embarked upon a run down the right and, when RWE custodian Marcel Lenz spilled the loose ball, Duman tucked away the follow-up. The attacking midfielder was deemed to be offside, however.

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BVB finally got their reward for a committed first-half display six minutes before the interval when Steffen Tigges picked out Joseph Boyamba, who went clean through on the Essen shot-stopper and comfortably slotted home the opener, before wheeling away towards the corner flag and back-flipping in celebration. The referee's whistle blew shortly afterwards with the score 1-0 at the break.

The second half: BVB were unchanged in the second period, which was relatively uneventful in the opening minutes – until Rot-Weiss Essen created an outstanding opportunity to restore parity on the 54-minute mark. Fortunately, though, Marcel Platzek headed the ball over the bar. Essen subsequently upped the ante and were the dominant team at that point.

Mike Tullberg made his first tactical tweak in the final 30 minutes, with Julian Schwermann replacing the hard-running Marco Hober in defensive midfield. The home side continued to enjoy control of the match, while BVB sat back and looked for counter-attacking opportunities. But the Black & Yellows had a chance to put the result beyond doubt on the 75-minute mark, Boyamba breaking down the right flank and crossing towards the onrushing Führich. The new signing from Cologne failed to make the right contact with the ball, however, allowing Lenz to make the save.

Essen finally pulled a goal back with 10 minutes to go, with Amara Condé spectacularly converting a direct free-kick from a centre-left position to make it 1-1; Eric Oelschlägel was powerless to prevent it from hitting the back of the net. The final few minutes were a tentative affair, with neither team wanting to make mistakes and neither taking the risk required to win. However, to the frustration of all Black & Yellows, the hosts did finally manage to find a winning goal five minutes into stoppage time when Alexander Hahn slotted home from the spot for Essen. The final whistle sounded soon afterwards and BVB could consider themselves unlucky to have gone down 2-1 in their first league outing.

The reaction from BVB boss Mike Tullberg: "First of all, I must praise the general atmosphere here. It was an advertisement for the fourth division. As for the match, we had a lot of chances to score more goals in the opening half. In the second half we should've added a second but didn't manage it. We have to accept the penalty but we could've also prevented it from happening in the first place. In the end, it was Essen who got the three points. I hope the lads can quickly put it behind them and will be raring to go next week."

The outlook: The Borussia Dortmund U23s are next in action on Sunday against Sportfreunde Lotte, who were relegated from the third division last term. The first home game of the season will take place on the day of the BVB season opening event. The kick-off at the Stadion Rote Erde will be 16:30 CET.

BVB U23s: Oelschlägel – Bünning, Rente, Hippe (Relucio, 71), Wanner – Konate, Duman (Rizzo, 78), Hober (Schwermann, 68) – Boyamba, Tigges, Führich

Goals: 0-1 Boyamba (39), 1-1 Condé (81), 2-1 Hahn (90+5)