Salzburg Sonata — Terrace Edition

Words: Stef Bruggeman

Images: Han Balk

Nine hundred kilometres from home — but it never felt so close.

Over 4,000 Go Ahead Eagles fans crossed Europe by train, plane, bus, and car.

The destination: Austria. To be more precise: Salzburg. Chapter Four of our European fairytale.

So far, the book’s been all joy — except for one black page: Gerrit Nauber’s brutal injury. Let’s keep it to just that one.

By Monday, the first red and yellow flags appeared. By Wednesday, the whole city was swimming in our colours. Salzburg had turned Deventer.

©Han Balk/ Terrace Edition. Go Ahead Eagles supporters. Salzburg.

We had our own pub — Club Half Moon. When that overflowed, we took Balboa. And when that overflowed, we took plenty of the city. Every bar, every corner, every street — full of Eagles.

Because that’s who we are: proud. Proud to show Europe what real football looks like. Proud that we are authentic.

Could our opponents say the same? Austria Salzburg was once a beautiful, authentic club. Until an energy drink company showed up.

Ours is still intact — alive and kicking in the city squares of Salzburg. Thousands of Dutch fans. Songs of the late Dutch singer Hazes echoing through the streets.

Locals filming in disbelief.

A sunset of red and yellow.

Everywhere you looked: Eagles.

©Han Balk/ Terrace Edition. Active DieHards Deventer. Salzburg.

Two hours before kickoff, the crowd gathered at the central station. One movement. One heartbeat. “As a kid, I dreamed of this,” someone said — face glowing like a flare.

Smoke bombs. Pyro. Chants rolling through the streets. The corteo began — slow, heavy, electric.

Forty-five minutes later: the Wals-Siezenheim stadium, AKA Red Bull Arena. A sleek, lifeless gate that didn’t want to open. A few Deventenaren solved that problem the old-fashioned way.

Inside, over 2,500 Eagles took their seats. You could read the banners: Twello on tour. Voorst on tour. Gorssel on tour. Schalkhaar on tour. All villages around Deventer.

Outnumbered? Maybe. Outsung? Never.

©Han Balk/ Terrace Edition. Go Ahead Eagles supporters. RB Salzburg.

The first half was balanced. The second — forgettable. They scored twice. We didn’t. 2–0.

No one cared. Because this isn’t about the score. It’s about the story. The pride. The colours. The city.

Six points already in the bag. Who saw that coming? Certainly not a certain Dutch sports-marketeer who suggested we would be a disgrace for Dutch football and end up without a single point.

Next stop: France.

À bientôt.