Kreuzlingen beat Basel II 3:1 in the Group Stage of the 1. Liga Promotion on Saturday afternoon. The home side climbed to eighth place while the visitors dropped to tenth after the result. Both sides carried six-point gaps in their favour before kickoff, so this match shifted the standings considerably.
Kreuzlingen had started the campaign unevenly with two wins, one draw and three losses. They looked sharper in their last outing, a 2:1 victory over Baden, and carried that momentum into the Basel fixture. The visitors were sitting ninth with three wins and three defeats, having won their most recent game 3:2 against Old Boys.
The away side had been fragile on the road all season. They had lost three of six matches and drawn none, which meant they were closing in on falling out of the top half entirely. Kreuzlingen, meanwhile, had kept three clean sheets on the spin recently and will make life awkward for teams still chasing promotion.
The result means the home club has now earned seven points from six games. Basel II remain on nine points but have played the same number of fixtures. The gap between them has narrowed to two points, and the table goes out of the window in these games when you consider form.
Kreuzlingen can raise the tempo when they need to, and this performance suggested they are closing in on a deal for something more meaningful than mid-table comfort. The visitors will need to turn to the kids soon if they want to salvage their campaign.