For the Haters — Paderborn

The Effenberg Times: SC Paderborn’s greatest footballing embarrassment was the 2015/16 Bundesliga 2 season under coach Stefan Effenberg.

The Effenberg Times: SC Paderborn’s greatest footballing emb...

The Effenberg Times: SC Paderborn’s greatest footballing embarrassment was the 2015/16 Bundesliga 2 season under coach Stefan Effenberg.

The Effenberg Times: SC Paderborn’s greatest footballing embarrassment was the 2015/16 Bundesliga 2 season under coach Stefan Effenberg. The 2001 Champions League winner and former Bayern Munich and Borussia Mönchengladbach pro became - leaving caretakers aside - the SCP coach with the worst points return. In 15 games under “Effe”, Paderborn collected only 0.8 points per match. Only a year after their Bundesliga adventure, the much-ridiculed side from East Westphalia were sitting in a relegation place in the second tier after a 4-0 loss to Union Berlin and with just one win in the previous 17 games. Christian Beeck, legendary figure of the second division, wrote in a SPORT1 column in April 2016 that anyone producing that sort of performance twelve months after relegation deserved to tumble straight into the third tier. He was right: by season’s end SCP went down as rock-bottom of the table with only 28 points.

All of Dortmund laughs at Paderborn: Marvin Bakalorz’s

All of Dortmund laughs at Paderborn: Marvin Bakalorz’s brutal foul on Marco Reus in the 2-2 Bundesliga draw in Paderborn on 22 November 2014, which ruled the Dortmund star out for the second time that season with torn ankle ligaments, had not been forgotten in Dortmund.

All of Dortmund laughs at Paderborn: Marvin Bakalorz’s brutal foul on Marco Reus in the 2-2 Bundesliga draw in Paderborn on 22 November 2014, which ruled the Dortmund star out for the second time that season with torn ankle ligaments, had not been forgotten in Dortmund. So the DFB Cup tie against the East Westphalians on 28 October 2015 at Signal Iduna Park became a festival for the black-and-yellows. Despite Srdjan Lakic putting Paderborn 1-0 up, Dortmund steamrollered Paderborn and coach Stefan Effenberg - a former Bayern man never much loved in Dortmund - 7-1. At that point it was the heaviest defeat in all competitions in SCP’s professional era.

It can always get worse: Relegation from Bundesliga

It can always get worse: Relegation from Bundesliga 2 in 2016 was not yet the end of the line for Paderborn.

It can always get worse: Relegation from Bundesliga 2 in 2016 was not yet the end of the line for Paderborn. On 19 November 2016 they were thrashed 6-0 by upstart club SF Lotte - their worst defeat in the 3. Liga.

“A wonderful experience” was apparently what SC Paderborn

“A wonderful experience” was apparently what SC Paderborn got every other week in the Bundesliga whenever the big clubs came to the little arena beside the furniture store.

“A wonderful experience” was apparently what SC Paderborn got every other week in the Bundesliga whenever the big clubs came to the little arena beside the furniture store. They especially looked forward to the visit of mighty Bayern Munich on 21 February 2015, who won 6-0. The atmosphere at the Benteler Arena had the feel of a cup tie between a rank outsider and Bayern, and afterwards coach André Breitenreiter cheerfully spoke of “a wonderful experience”. On that day, Bayern shirts and autographs seemed to matter more in Paderborn than the performance on the pitch. Irritating, to say the least.

The 2015/16 second-division season brought several negative ...

The 2015/16 second-division season brought several negative records for Paderborn.

The 2015/16 second-division season brought several negative records for Paderborn. One of them was the club’s heaviest Bundesliga 2 defeat: 0-6 away to SV Sandhausen in the sleepy Kurpfalz. Bon appétit. That equalled the club’s previous 0-6 in Aue in 2008.

Further cringe-inducing records from that season - much

Further cringe-inducing records from that season - much to the delight of critics who had never really taken the club from East Westphalia seriously i...

Further cringe-inducing records from that season - much to the delight of critics who had never really taken the club from East Westphalia seriously in the first place - included the following:

The worst points haul in professional football: 28

The worst points haul in professional football: 28 points....

The worst points haul in professional football: 28 points.

The worst final placing: 18th - and Paderborn

The worst final placing: 18th - and Paderborn managed that twice in a row, in the Bundesliga in 2014/15 and one year later in Bundesliga 2....

The worst final placing: 18th - and Paderborn managed that twice in a row, in the Bundesliga in 2014/15 and one year later in Bundesliga 2.

The fewest wins: only six victories for the

The fewest wins: only six victories for the blue-and-blacks.

The fewest wins: only six victories for the blue-and-blacks. Union Berlin, Karlsruher SC, Eintracht Braunschweig and FSV Frankfurt (all 2-0), Fortuna Düsseldorf (2-1) and FC St. Pauli (4-3) were among the very few benefactors.

The most defeats: for Paderborn haters, 2015/16 was

The most defeats: for Paderborn haters, 2015/16 was one long funfair.

The most defeats: for Paderborn haters, 2015/16 was one long funfair. Eighteen times they got to celebrate another SCP defeat.

The fewest goals: the team managed just 28.

The fewest goals: the team managed just 28.

The fewest goals: the team managed just 28. Top scorer was Moritz Stoppelkamp, still in the squad after relegation from the Bundesliga, with six goals.

Three coaches worn out: in 2015/16, three different

Three coaches worn out: in 2015/16, three different coaches - René Müller even had two separate spells - failed to save Paderborn from relegation from Bundesliga 2.

Three coaches worn out: in 2015/16, three different coaches - René Müller even had two separate spells - failed to save Paderborn from relegation from Bundesliga 2. Markus Gellhaus, successor to legendary promotion coach André Breitenreiter, was finished after eleven games. Even so, his average of 0.91 points per match was still better than that of his much noisier and far more heavily marketed successor Stefan Effenberg, who was gone after 15 matches and fewer than 150 days.

And there is more than just that season

And there is more than just that season to lament: the longest winless streak lasted exactly six months, from 13 May to 13 November 2007 - 15 matches.

And there is more than just that season to lament: the longest winless streak lasted exactly six months, from 13 May to 13 November 2007 - 15 matches. Naturally, Paderborn were relegated at the end of that campaign.

The worst scoring drought came in the second

The worst scoring drought came in the second half of the club’s first Bundesliga season: from 21 February to 6 April 2015, SCP failed to score in six ...

The worst scoring drought came in the second half of the club’s first Bundesliga season: from 21 February to 6 April 2015, SCP failed to score in six straight matches.

The longest losing streak came in spring 2003:

The longest losing streak came in spring 2003: another six-pack, from 3 May to 8 June - in the Regionalliga....

The longest losing streak came in spring 2003: another six-pack, from 3 May to 8 June - in the Regionalliga.

The 2019/20 relegation with only 20 points was as clear as it gets — Paderborn went down as bottom club without any realistic chance of survival....