Metcalfe assist gets St Pauli push back on track
Jackson Irvine led his St Pauli side to a vital 2-1 away win at Hannoerin 2. Bundesliga to keep pace with league leader Holstein Kiel in the race for promotion to Germany's top flight.
Kiel's win over Hamburg had pushed it four points clear at the summit, but Pauli pulled the gap back to a single point, and probably ended Hannover's promotion hopes in the process.
After successive defeats, it was vital Pauli got back to winning ways, and Irvine's Australia team-mate Connor Metcalfe was on hand to assist the opener, his sending headed home by Oladapo Afolayan on 41 minutes to give the visitors the lead.
But Hannover bounced back almost immediately, Lars Gindorf converting from close range for his first goal for the club.
But Pauli dug in in the second half, and its desperation paid off on 65 minutes when Johannes Eggestein netted the winning goal from a set-piece.
"It's hard to put into words. Today was about getting three points no matter how against a team with a lot of quality, so I'm obviously very pleased with the win after a sluggish start," Socceroos star and St Pauli captain Irvine said.
"We gave the ball away too easily and Niko kept us in it with some great saves. The longer the game went on, the more we found our rhythm and then we're difficult to stop.
"We talked a lot about the pressure during the week, so it was about trying to relax without getting casual or losing intensity.
"We tried to come up with different solutions. We now have a short week in front of us and then two very exciting games."
St Pauli faces lowly Hansa Rostock next weekend before a big game against fourth-placed Hamburg on 4 May (AEST).
