The third division handball players at HSG Freiburg are about to return to the 2nd Bundesliga in the promotion round. The Bojic team is still missing a point. What makes throwers so strong?
Perhaps the Red Sparrows can even celebrate their ascent from the comfort of their own home. The third division handball players at HSG Freiburg have no games on Saturday. If the two Eastern clubs from Rostock and Frankfurt an der Oder draw a draw on this match day, the current second Freiburg could no longer be denied promotion.
“We’ll look at the results in a relaxed manner and maybe we’ll even be able to open a champagne then,” says Gisela Schoritz, the sporting director of the Freiburger Spatzen. She currently has a lot to be satisfied with.
Two years after leaving the third division, your team could now return to the second division after two seasons. Her coach Igor Bojic therefore says: “We are very satisfied with the current season and situation.”
The start of the promotion round, in which the top five of all third division seasons compete against each other, was anything but successful. Against Rostock, the Red Sparrows got lost at home at the start. “It was a stuttering start, in which we fell far short of our potential,” says Schoritz about her team’s 27:30 defeat three weeks ago.
“Maybe the girls put themselves under too much pressure because they really want to get promoted,” muses Schoritz, only to then clarify: “But there’s no outside pressure at all. We say everything can, nothing has to.”
Coach Bojic, however, is proud that his team then put two victories on the floor. A 25:22 away win in Frankfurt an der Oder was followed by a 30:26 home win over Kirchhof last weekend. “That’s why we only look at ourselves and really not at all at others,” says Bojic.
His team is still one point away from promotion. Because the first three teams qualify for the 2nd Bundesliga. But be careful: The promotion round is tight, although all games so far have been decided with at least three goals difference. That’s why the champagne corks shouldn’t pop too early in Breisgau. But that is not to be feared for the Bojic team anyway. Since Bojic took over as coach from Ralf Wiggenhauser two years ago after relegation, he has introduced a regiment of humility. Step by step, never in big leaps, that’s his credo. The Croatian ex-professional player has ordered his team to play defensively in line with his defensive rhetoric. At the back they stand in the collective. In the third division, their defense was considered very difficult to overcome. And in accordance with the reserved nature of the HSG, the collective is currently the star. “In contrast to the other teams in the promotion round, which many professional players afford, we come through the community,” explains Schoritz.
In Rostock and Frankfurt, for example, “individual super players” would make the difference. In Rostock, Nele Reimer is a seasoned national player, in Frankfurt Anna-Maria Spielvogel is a long-standing first-division player.
In Freiburg, on the other hand, no player obviously stands out. Rebecca Dürr shines in attack and defence, Hannah Person and Julia von Kampen touch concrete at the back, Jessica Peter poses a threat up front on the circle, as does Nelli Hautz in the back. Leonie Kuntz is a strong support in goal. “For us, it’s the strong breadth,” says Schoritz.
The current challenge, however, is the multi-track planning. On the one hand, the team is preparing for the final, on the other hand, Schoritz has to plan for the 3rd and 2nd leagues. New players were already in trial training. Everything is actually ready for the Spatzen to return to the 2nd Bundesliga. It’s probably just a matter of time now.
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