St Gallen women played host to Aarau in the fifth round of the National League A on Tuesday, and the match ended 2-2. There were no goals, no controversies, and not much to separate two sides already deep in trouble at the bottom of the table. By then you know where to look.
St Gallen arrived eighth with three points from four games, one win and three defeats. Aarau sat tenth and had lost all four of theirs. Two sides with nothing to play for, fighting for pride rather than position. To be fair, that is often where football finds its honesty.
The result keeps both teams in their respective places. St Gallen remain eight points clear of the bottom, though that cushion is not as comfortable as it might appear. Aarau are still winless, still searching for something, anything, to change the narrative. Three goals conceded on average tells you what you need to know.
Recent form does not suggest either side is turning a corner. St Gallen lost 1-0 to Basel on Friday and 3-1 to Lucerne before that. Aarau have not won since May, and their last outing saw them go down 1-0 away at Lucerne. The heat took the sting out of it all, if there was any sting to begin with.
What matters now is whether either team can find something to build on. A draw at least gives St Gallen a point to take forward. For Aarau, it is another game where they stayed in it for ninety minutes. That is not much, but it is more than they had before.