Schalke 04 was the big winner on matchday 23 of the second Bundesliga.

While the Royal Blues celebrated a 2-0 (1-0) win against SC Paderborn on Friday, all their competitors dropped points in the promotion race.

Werder Bremen is the leader despite the 1-1 (0-0) against relegation candidate FC Ingolstadt.

Darmstadt 98 did not get better than 1: 1 (1: 0) in the home game against Hansa Rostock on Sunday and is third in the table.

FC St. Pauli lost 0:3 (0:1) against Hannover 96 and slipped down to fourth place.

In Sunday's third game, Fortuna Düsseldorf won a 3-1 (1-0) win against bottom team Erzgebirge Aue in a basement duel.

Tobias Kempe (24') made Darmstadt 1-0 against Rostock, Danylo Sikan (65') scored the equalizer.

At the Millerntor Dominik Kaiser (40th) gave the Hanoverians the lead, Sebastian Kerk (57th) and Sebastian Stolze (72nd) were responsible for the other goals for the guests off the line.

St. Pauli's Daniel Kyereh (81st) put a penalty kick on the crossbar.

Rouwen Hennings (5th/90th) and Daniel Ginczek (51st, penalty kick) scored the goals for Düsseldorf.

Prince Owusu (77th) scored the Aue goal to make it 1-2.

Werner missed the Rehhagel record

Bremen, under head coach Ole Werner, had missed Otto Rehhagel's club win record, but could console themselves with leading the table (42 points).

Hamburger SV also lost two points in the 1-1 (0-1) draw at SV Sandhausen, but is one point behind in second place.

Next Sunday (1.30 p.m. / Sky) HSV has home rights against Werder.

Only two points separate the top five teams in the table.

Werner was not upset by missing Rehhagel's old record for Bremen.

"I would have liked to win today, I'm not interested in anything else about the series," said the SV Werder head coach after the draw.

The eighth success in a row and the setting of the best mark of "König Otto" was possible, but his team missed numerous chances and the possible decision when the score was 1:0.

Rehhagel had set the record in the 1980/81 season, when Bremen also played in the second division and managed to return to the top flight at the end of the season.