11 Oct 2026
Sunday
Process
10 Edition

The Grodig Courier

5 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

11 matches without a win for Grodig

The run now stands at 11, and the questions being asked around Grodig are no longer polite ones.

Match

Grodig sink to position 10

0 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.

Match

A hiding for Grodig

Beaten 1‑4 by Austria Wien, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.

Squad

A one-man rearguard from Lukas Gütlbauer

There were 7 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.

Market

David Hillebrand hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Grodig can pretend not to have heard.

Match

Grodig leaking at the back

6 matches, two or more conceded in every one of them. Sides that create as much as this can live with it for a while. Nobody lives with it forever.

Squad

Tempers go at Grodig

Sebastian Bauer was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

The dugout

Malcolm Cacutalua gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Boardroom

Nobody left the Grodig dressing room in a hurry

The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.

In brief

Back issues
9 Edition

The Grodig Courier

28 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Lukas Gütlbauer stands alone

11 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.

Match

The wait goes on for Grodig

10 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.

Match

A hiding for Grodig

Beaten 1‑6 by Rapid Wien, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.

Market

David Drljić hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Grodig can pretend not to have heard.

Match

Grodig are shipping goals every week

Two or more conceded in each of the last 5 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.

Squad

Mario Pokar in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Grodig this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

7 goals as Grodig and Rapid Wien go for it

Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 7 goals between Grodig and Rapid Wien, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.

Squad

Words at Grodig training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Sebastian Bauer is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

No hiding place for Mario Pokar

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Mario Pokar, and the manager let it.

In brief

  • Match The half-term report on Grodig
  • Boardroom Inquest at Grodig
  • The dugout The manager’s verdict
8 Edition

The Grodig Courier

21 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

21 saves: Lukas Gütlbauer was the team

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 21 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.

Match

Chastening afternoon for Grodig

A 1‑6 beating by Red Bull Salzburg was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.

Match

No end in sight to Grodig's wait for a win

9 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Grodig has to find a result from somewhere.

Squad

A falling-out at Grodig

Momčilo Mrkaić and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Match

Momčilo Mrkaić among the goals in a wild afternoon

7 goals in one match, Momčilo Mrkaić on the scoresheet, and a scoreline that will look like a misprint. Neutrals could not have asked more of Grodig and Red Bull Salzburg.

Squad

Words at Grodig training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mario Pokar is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

Grodig are shipping goals every week

Two or more conceded in each of the last 4 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.

The dugout

Robert Völkl gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Boardroom

Nobody left the Grodig dressing room in a hurry

The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.

In brief

7 Edition

The Grodig Courier

14 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

A hiding for Grodig

Beaten 0‑4 by Altach, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.

Match

8 matches without a win for Grodig

The run now stands at 8, and the questions being asked around Grodig are no longer polite ones.

Squad

A one-man rearguard from Lukas Gütlbauer

There were 8 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.

Match

The goals have deserted Grodig

6 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Grodig can tell you which week it ends in.

Squad

Mario Pokar falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Transfer targets

Porto tell Grodig: Gonçalo Sousa is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

The dugout

No hiding place for Lukas Gütlbauer

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Lukas Gütlbauer, and the manager let it.

Market

Grodig promote Christoph Ulmer from within

The academy exists for exactly this morning. Christoph Ulmer has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.

Market

One of our own: Sebastian Wimmer joins the Grodig first team

Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Sebastian Wimmer is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.

In brief

6 Edition

The Grodig Courier

7 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

Grodig sink to position 10

0 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.

Squad

Lukas Gütlbauer keeps Grodig in it on his own

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.

Match

7 matches without a win for Grodig

The run now stands at 7, and the questions being asked around Grodig are no longer polite ones.

Market

David Hillebrand hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Grodig can pretend not to have heard.

Boardroom

Grodig close the window on a squad of their own making

23 in and 0 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.

Match

5 matches without a goal for Grodig

The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 5 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.

Transfer targets

Filip Thorvaldsen will not be coming to Grodig

Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Twente is saying, and nobody at Grodig is enjoying the guessing.

Squad

A falling-out at Grodig

Philipp Hoffmann and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

Sebastian Bauer falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

In brief

5 Edition

The Grodig Courier

31 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

11 saves: Lukas Gütlbauer was the team

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 11 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.

Match

Grodig out of the cup

SV Ried ended it 0‑1. The season narrows to the league now, and everyone in the ground knew it before the final whistle.

Match

A hiding for Grodig

Beaten 0‑3 by Wolfsberger AC, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.

Market

David Drljić hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Grodig can pretend not to have heard.

Match

The wait goes on for Grodig

6 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.

Transfer targets

Diego Callai turns down Grodig

The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Sporting CP keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.

Match

4 matches without a goal for Grodig

The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 4 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.

Squad

Sebastian Bauer in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Grodig this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Transfer targets

Grodig rebuffed over Dmytro Ledvii

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. LNZ have kept their man, and Grodig go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

In brief

4 Edition

The Grodig Courier

24 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

A one-man rearguard from Lukas Gütlbauer

There were 10 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.

Match

Grodig taken apart

0‑3 to Sturm Graz, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.

Transfer targets

No deal for Yusuf Demir at that price

Grodig offered $1.2M; Rapid Wien said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.

Match

No end in sight to Grodig's wait for a win

4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Grodig has to find a result from somewhere.

Transfer targets

Door shut on Srđan Hrstić

Grodig asked and Altach said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Squad

A falling-out at Grodig

Sebastian Bauer and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

A row about effort at Grodig

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Alexander Schwaighofer was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Match

No clean sheets in sight for Grodig

4 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.

The dugout

Sebastian Hölzl gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

In brief

3 Edition

The Grodig Courier

17 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

A one-man rearguard from Lukas Gütlbauer

There were 6 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.

Transfer targets

Grodig bid $1.2M for Yusuf Demir

The offer went to Rapid Wien this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.

Market

Grodig pay Wolfsberger AC $700.0K for a proper upgrade

Wolfsberger AC did not want to sell and the number is why they did. $700.0K for Lukas Gütlbauer, and the expectation that arrives with him is the kind no amount of settling-in period softens.

Transfer targets

Mattersburg tell Grodig: Christoph Kalajdzic is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Squad

Words exchanged at Grodig

Alexander Schwaighofer and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

The terraces

The town asked, and Grodig paid $700.0K

Lukas Gütlbauer was the name on every phone-in, and the club has gone and signed him for $700.0K. For one week the board can do no wrong, which is a week most boards never get.

Squad

A row about effort at Grodig

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Sebastian Bauer was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Match

SV Ried take the points off Grodig

Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout

Thomas Niedermüller gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

In brief

2 Edition

The Grodig Courier

10 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

Nowhere to hide for Grodig

1‑8 against Mattersburg, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.

Squad

Vlado Graboviča keeps Grodig in it on his own

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.

Transfer targets

No deal for Tobias Gruber at that price

Grodig offered $1.2M; Wolfsberger AC said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.

Match

9 goals as Grodig and Mattersburg go for it

Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 9 goals between Grodig and Mattersburg, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.

Squad

A row about effort at Grodig

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Alexander Schwaighofer was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Squad

Momčilo Mrkaić in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Grodig this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Market

One of our own: Konrad Dragovic joins the Grodig first team

Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Konrad Dragovic is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.

Market

Philipp Ulmer steps up from the Grodig academy

There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Philipp Ulmer has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.

Market

Konrad Weimann steps up from the Grodig academy

There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Konrad Weimann has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.

In brief

1 Edition

The Grodig Courier

3 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

10 saves: Vlado Graboviča was the team

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 10 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.

Match

Grodig taken apart

0‑5 to Austria Wien, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.

The terraces

The stands have turned

“Enough is enough. We have watched this for months.” 5 of the 24 senior players walked off to it, and the message was not aimed at any one of them.

Transfer targets

Grodig make their move for Tobias Gruber

$1.0M on the table at Wolfsberger AC. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.

Transfer targets

An offer of $660.0K for Lukas Gütlbauer

Grodig have gone to Wolfsberger AC with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.

Squad

Robert Völkl stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Robert Völkl and Grodig agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

Tempers go at Grodig

Alexander Schwaighofer was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Transfer targets

Door shut on Dominik Kirnbauer

Grodig asked and SV Ried said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Vlado Graboviča

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

In brief