On the last matchday of the handball Bundesliga, the title and relegation battle is still (almost) everything. It could be dramatic.
The Foxes Berlin separates only one point at the Rhein-Neckar Löwen on Sunday (from 3 p.m. live in the AudioStream on Sportschau.de) from the first championship title in the club’s history. Jaron Siewert’s team has a point ahead of the only remaining competitor SC Magdeburg and the significantly better goal difference.
Magdeburg hopes for a cream day of the Rhein-Neckar Löwen
The defending champion from Magdeburg plays in parallel against the relegation threatened SG BBM Bietigheim – at least on paper, this is the easier task as the Berlin guest appearance at the table ninth, who defeated Kiel, Melsungen, Flensburg and Gummersbach at home. On good days, the team, which is clearly too unconstant this season, is to trust the national players Juri Knorr and David Späth to a surprise in their own hall.
| Place | team | Gaming | Dot | Gate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Foxes Berlin | 33 | 56:10 | +208 |
2 | Mt Melsungen | 33 | 55:11 | +153 |
However, the Berliners won the first leg confidently with 34:27 and the current form of the team around superstar Mathias Gidsel is almost scary: 45:35, 35:20, 37:29, 43:28, 34:26, 42:30 – These are the last six results of the foxes. The clenched offensive power of the Berliner is also impressive in the end of the season, no trace of fatigue. This was also necessary for the Siewert, who was just freshly chosen to the coach of the season, after the 45:35 against Gummersbach: “I would not have thought to win with ten goals difference against Gummersbach. The boys are simply incredible.”
Foxes coach Jaron Siebert has been foiled for the coach of the year, is his first championship title now followed?
Already a “masterpiece” for Jaron Siewert?
For the Berlin -born, who is still only 31 years old, the first championship title in club history would be a very early masterpiece in a more than promising coaching career – especially since the foxes with Tim Freihöfer (22), Nils Lichtlein (22), Matthes Langhoff (23) and goalkeeper Lasse Ludwig (22) have various very young German players in their ranks a (potential) championship team. In the end, only the hope of a cream day of the lions or problems in the nervous costume of the Berliners remains, which have already proven great nerve strength in the Champions League this year.
Incidentally, third and fourth place have already been awarded: the MT Melsungen, long self -candidate, had to have a little springs in the end of the season and with 53:13 points no more chance of slipping or becoming second, Kiel secured fourth place (49:17) while Flensburg (45:21) and above all Hannover (44:22, five victorious games in series) had to be torn down.
Forecast: Berlin can no longer be taken away and the development of recent years is crowning the championship, even if the SCM also wins its game.
Bietigheim, Erlangen and Stuttgart tremble in the relegation battle
In the table cellar it doesn’t look rosy for TVB Stuttgart. A few weeks ago, they had been in 15th place, since only the 17th and 18th descend to the 2nd league, everything looked for the Stuttgart team after another Bundesliga year. But in the last nine Bundesliga games, only one victory was achieved, the duels against the direct competitors Erlangen and Bietigheim were lost and on the 33rd matchday they were dramatically lost at the last second! Göppingen with 27:28.
| Place | team | Gaming | Dot | Gate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
15 | SG BBM Bietigheim | 33 | 17:49 | -137 |
16 | HC Erlangen | 33 | 16:50 | -102 |
17 | TVB Stuttgart | 33 | 16:50 | -140 |
18 | 1. VfL Potsdam | 33 | 6:60 | -198 |
On paper, the Stuttgart reservations no longer stay in their own hands, realistically speaking, a victory against Leipzig, which, especially against Bietigheim, came under 25:34 and has nothing to win in tabular, but mean that the Bietigheimers are dealing with SC Magdeburg and will hardly get any countable.
The HC Erlangen, who looked like a safe relegation with only five points after the first half of the season,, like Bietigheim, with a strong final sprint, has now achieved the chance of staying in the league. Coach Johannes Sellin had been released in October, but because it was by no means better under the successor Martin Schwalb, Sellin has been back in office since February and is jointly responsible for the upward trend of the Francs. In order to secure the league remaining on your own, he has to get at least one point at the HSG Wetzlar.
In 18th place, the 1st VfL Potsdam with its very young team has been relegated for weeks, but after a back series without a single point, it showed a rising performance curve.
Forecast: Erlangen and Stuttgart score on the last matchday and the Bietigheimers have to take the course back to the 2nd league just a year after the promotion.