In 1995, SCRJ competed with Lausanne to set a Swiss record

memorable

November 28, 1995: SC Rapperswil-Jona is better than ever. He is the NLA leader and will finish third at the end of qualifying. The people of St. Gallen were also remembered in history for a massive brawl.

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Toe to toe was the watchword at the Lido Stadium, where only 3,050 spectators were willing to watch despite the soaring housing prices in Rapperswil. The absent team not only missed SCRJ's home win over Lausanne, but also missed out on a historic brawl. Because in the 3-1 victory, the total 276 penalty minutes was unprecedented in the National A League.

The atmosphere was electric from the start. The game escalated in midfield when Lausanne's Maxime Lapointe intercepted Rapperswil defender Daniel Bünzli. To this day, he still laughs because he is about 20 centimeters taller than Lapointe, so he can take off the jersey and win the game.

everything against everything

This is probably a good thing. But it was SCRJ goalkeeper Claudio Bayer who was the real instigator. He turned his stick and Lapointe's jersey into a mop and used them to clear the ice. When the people of Vaud saw this, all the fuses blew. They hit the ice and now it's “all against.”

Twenty years later, Bayer remembers the incident clearly. He commented on his behavior with a smile: “I probably hung the jersey on a stick and took it to the dugout in Lausanne, and they probably got it wrong.”

These photos were spread all over the world

Rapperswil-Joona was not the center of the sports world then or now. But images of the fight circulated around the world. “A good friend from Tokyo called me and he saw me on TV,” Benzley recalled.

As the principal offenders, he and Lapointe were suspended and fined 700 francs. “What a shame, now I have to cancel my ski holiday,” Bendsley commented after the verdict.

The referee feels complicit

Referee Roland Stade and his assistants took a long time to write down all the penalties, and the game was interrupted for 25 minutes. Referees have to accept criticism of match management and he accepted it. “Maybe I neglected to act early,” Stade said.

The ten team members must take a shower early. The game ended in a penalty shootout after 276 minutes, with leader Rapperswil winning 3-1. West Buburn finished qualifying in third place, which remains a club record (together with the 2022/23 season). In the quarter-finals, they still lost because of Ambry Piota.