1977–78 FDGB-Pokal


The 1977–78 season saw the 27th competition for the FDGB-Pokal of East Germany.
After a qualifying round with four teams from the second-tier DDR-Liga the first round proper was played with 55 teams from the DDR-Liga, the two teams that had been relegated from the DDR-Oberliga in 1976–77 and the 18 Bezirkspokal winners of 1977. From the round of last 16 onwards fixtures were decided over two legs. If the fixture could not be decided in regular time, extra time and penalty shoot-out were used.
After an intermediate round which saw all Bezirkspokal winners eliminated, with the exception of Motor Warnowwerft, the 2nd round proper saw the Oberliga teams entering the competition. Five Oberliga teams were eliminated in the 2nd round: Hallescher FC Chemie, 1. FC Union Berlin, Chemie Böhlen, Sachsenring Zwickau and Wismut Aue. The last Bezirkspokal winner was eliminated from the competition as well.
Last year's finalist 1. FC Lok Leipzig was eliminated in the round of last 16. Of the seven DDR-Liga sides that reached this round only three reached the quarterfinals, but were eliminated there. Title holders Dynamo Dresden again reached the final where they met four time FDGB-Pokal winners 1. FC Magdeburg.

Preliminary round

BSG EAB Lichtenberg 47 Berlin – BSG Nord Max-Mattern Torgelow3–0
BSG Motor Veilsdorf – BSG Motor Altenburg2–4

Round 1

BSG Sparta Lichtenberg – SG Dynamo Fürstenwalde3 – 5 aet
BSG Aufbau Großräschen – BSG Motor Werdau2 – 3
BSG Wismut Pirna-Copitz – BSG Aktivist Brieske-Senftenberg2 – 1
ZSG Leinefelde – BSG Chemie-Glas IW Ilmenau1 – 0
BSG Empor Beeskow – BSG Motor Hennigsdorf2 – 1
BSG Fortschritt Münchenbernsdorf – BSG Umformtechnik Erfurt1 – 4
BSG Stahl WW Hettstedt – BSG Lokomotive Halberstadt3 – 1
ASG Vorwärts Plauen II – BSG Fortschritt Bischofswerda0 – 0 aet, 3 – 1 pen
BSG DIMO Böhlitz-Ehrenberg – FSV Lokomotive Dresden1 – 6
BSG Aktivist Gommern – BSG Chemie Veritas Wittenberge5 – 7 aet
BSG Demminer Verkehrsbetriebe – TSG Bau Rostock0 – 6
BSG Chemie Velten – BSG Energie Cottbus1 – 6
BSG Motor Warnowwerft Warnemünde – BSG Einheit Güstrow4 – 1
ISG Schwerin Süd – ASG Vorwärts Neubrandenburg0 – 1
BSG Akt. Kali Werra Tiefenort II – BSG Zentronik Sömmerda1 – 4
BSG Post Neubrandenburg – F.C. Hansa Rostock1 – 0
SG Dynamo Schwerin – BSG Lokomotive Stendal4 – 0
BSG Stahl Hennigsdorf – BSG Motor Schwerin6 – 2
BSG Chemie PCK Schwedt – BSG Kernkraftwerk Greifswald0 – 1
BSG Aktivist Schwarze Pumpe – BSG Aktivist Espenhain2 – 1
BSG Schiffahrt/Hafen Rostock – BSG Einheit Grevesmühlen4 – 1
TSG Wismar – TSG Neustrelitz2 – 1
BSG Stahl Blankenburg – BSG Motor Nordhausen3 – 2 aet
BSG Motor Weimar – BSG Einheit Wernigerode4 – 0
BSG Stahl Thale – BSG Aktivist Kali Werra Tiefenort2 – 1
SG Dynamo Eisleben – BSG Motor Altenburg3 – 0
BSG Chemie Buna Schkopau – BSG Fortschritt Weida5 – 0
BSG Stahl Finow – BSG Stahl Brandenburg2 – 1
TSG Gröditz – BSG Stahl Eisenhüttenstadt1 – 1 aet, 6 – 5 pen
BSG Motor Suhl – BSG Chemie Leipzig5 – 3
BSG Rotes Banner Trinwillershagen – ASG Vorwärts Stralsund2 – 7
BSG Motor Eberswalde – BSG EAB Lichtenberg 47 Berlin3 – 0
ASG Vorwärts Dessau – BSG Motor Babelsberg3 – 1
BSG Rotation Berlin – BSG Stahl Riesa0 – 1
BSG Motor Hermsdorf – BSG Fortschritt Krumhermersdorf4 – 3
BSG Chemie Zeitz – ASG Vorwärts Plauen0 – 1

Intermediate round

BSG Wismut Pirna-Copitz – ASG Vorwärts Plauen2 – 3
BSG Stahl WW Hettstedt – TSG Gröditz1 – 2
ASG Vorwärts Plauen II – BSG Motor Weimar1 – 3
BSG Motor Warnowwerft Warnemünde – TSG Wismar3 – 1
ZSG Leinefelde – SG Dynamo Eisleben0 – 1
BSG Empor Beeskow – SG Dynamo Fürstenwalde1 – 2
BSG Umformtechnik Erfurt – BSG Chemie Buna Schkopau1 – 2
TSG Bau Rostock – BSG Stahl Hennigsdorf2 – 3
BSG Zentronik Sömmerda – BSG Stahl Thale2 – 4
FC Energie Cottbus – ASG Vorwärts Dessau4 – 2
ASG Vorwärts Stralsund – BSG Schiffahrt/Hafen Rostock3 – 1
BSG Stahl Riesa – BSG Aktivist Schwarze Pumpe2 – 0
BSG Motor Werdau – BSG Motor Suhl2 – 1
FSV Lokomotive Dresden – BSG Motor Hermsdorf4 – 2 aet
ASG Vorwärts Neubrandenburg – SG Dynamo Schwerin4 – 0
BSG Kernkraftwerk Greifswald – BSG Post Neubrandenburg1 – 1 aet, 4 – 2 pen
BSG Chemie Veritas Wittenberge – BSG Stahl Blankenburg2 – 3
BSG Stahl Finow – BSG Motor Eberswalde1 – 2

Round 2

SG Dynamo Fürstenwalde – SG Dynamo Dresden2 – 3
BSG Motor Weimar – FC Carl Zeiss Jena0 – 2
BSG KKW Greifswald – Berliner FC Dynamo0 – 2
BSG Stahl Hennigsdorf – 1. FC Magdeburg1 – 6
BSG Stahl Riesa – Hallescher FC Chemie4 – 1
BSG Motor Werdau – 1. FC Union Berlin0 – 0 n.V., E. 3 – 1
SG Dynamo Eisleben – BSG Chemie Böhlen1 – 0
ASG Vorwärts Plauen – 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig0 – 3
BSG Stahl Blankenburg – FC Rot-Weiß Erfurt0 – 3
ASV Vorwärts Neubrandenburg – FC Vorwärts Frankfurt/Oder0 – 2
BSG Chemie Buna Schkopau – BSG Sachsenring Zwickau2 – 0
FSV Lokomotive Dresden – BSG Wismut Aue1 – 0 aet
TSG Gröditz – FC Karl-Marx-Stadt0 – 2
BSG Stahl Thale – BSG Wismut Gera1 – 2 aet
ASG Vorwärts Stralsund – BSG Motor Warnowwerft Warnemünde7 – 1
BSG Motor Eberswalde – BSG Energie Cottbus1 – 3

Last 16

Berliner FC Dynamo – 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig5 – 0, 1 – 2
FC Rot-Weiß Erfurt – BSG Wismut Gera1 – 2, 2 – 0
1. FC Magdeburg – BSG Stahl Riesa2 – 1, 5 – 0
FSV Lokomotive Dresden – SG Dynamo Dresden1 – 7, 0 – 4
BSG Energie Cottbus – FC Vorwärts Frankfurt/Oder2 – 1, 0 – 4
SG Dynamo Eisleben – BSG Chemie Buna Schkopau2 – 2, 1 – 1
FC Karl-Marx-Stadt – BSG Motor Werdau0 – 1, 2 – 3
FC Carl Zeiss Jena – ASG Vorwärts Stralsund1 – 2, 1 – 0

Quarterfinals

SG Dynamo Dresden – BSG Motor Werdau5 – 1, 3 – 0
ASG Vorwärts Stralsund – Berliner FC Dynamo0 – 4, 0 – 3
1. FC Magdeburg – FC Vorwärts Frankfurt/Oder2 – 0, 3 – 1
FC Rot-Weiß Erfurt – BSG Chemie Buna Schkopau4 – 0, 1 – 0

Semifinals

1. FC Magdeburg – Berliner FC Dynamo4 – 0, 1 – 1
FC Rot-Weiß Erfurt – SG Dynamo Dresden1 – 2, 0 – 0

Final

Statistics

Match report

The 1978 FDGB-Pokal final was a summit meeting of East German football in several ways. The opponents were Dynamo Dresden – three-time cup winners, four-time East German champions who were leading the DDR-Oberliga at the time – and 1. FC Magdeburg – three-time champions and four-time cup winners who were second in the league, trailing Dynamo by two points. 19 players on the pitch played for the national team, ten on Dynamo's and nine on Magdeburg's squad. Generally, Dynamo Dresden were regarded as favorites; Magdeburg had only got their best eleven back after a long injury break.
But the audience were in for a surprise: It was not Dynamo Dresden who took the game in their hands, but Magdeburg dictated play over the entire 90 minutes. Not only did Magdeburg take the lead early in the game, when their libero Manfred Zapf headed home after 8 minutes, but afterwards they attacked Dresden's goal relentlessly, generating no less than 23 dangerous attacks in the rest of the game. On the other side, Dresden had their first true opportunity only in the 74th minute. While Dresden's playmakers Dörner and Häfner could not get their team's play under control and their teammates lost most one-on-one duels, Magdeburg played a straightforward quick attacking game. Former East German international Otto Fräßdorf as a neutral spectator was convinced Magdeburg would be victorious even at half-time. After the break Dynamo tried hard to turn the game around, but their weak attacking play was foiled by Magdeburg's compact defending. Magdeburg's Raugust, Seguin and Decker were often able to initiate counter-attacks. As the sole defect of Magdeburg's game was their weak conversion ratio, the victory remained a slim one. Referee Prokop said in the aftermath: "A good final. Not one malicious foul. The level of play was also worthy of a final. There were a lot of scenes in the penalty area. Attractive advertising for good football."
Magdeburg had won the cup for the fifth time and the trophy was permanently given to the club.