As of: November 15, 2025 9:40 p.m
SG Flensburg-Handewitt suffered its first defeat of the season in the Handball Bundesliga. Coach Ales Pajovic’s team lost in the top game against SC Magdeburg 31:35 (17:15).
The success of the Champions League winner over the European League title holders was fully deserved. Magdeburg played more calmly, more calmly and simply made fewer mistakes. In the second half, Flensburg were unable to build on what had been a good first half for long stretches.
In addition, the SCM had significantly stronger goalkeeping through keeper Sergey Hernández Ferrer (15 saves) than the SG had that evening from Kevin Möller and Benjamin Buric (together six saves). Symbolic of the hosts’ evening: the best thrower was Simon Pytlick, who scored all seven of his goals in the first half.
Backcourt player Luca Witzke complained that the team had “made a few too many mistakes”. Due to the first defeat of the season, the Schleswig-Holsteiners are now three minus points behind coach Bennet Wiegert’s team. There isn’t much time left to deal with frustration, the European League continues on Tuesday with the home game against ASC Potaissa Turda (8.45 p.m., in the NDR Livecenter) – and just three days later there is the league game against MT Melsungen (8 p.m., also in the NDR Livecenter).
SCM counters strong Flensburg start
The SG only needed about three minutes to heat up the “Hell North” even further. Goalkeeper Möller made a save and Marko Grgic scored to make it 2-0. When Flensburg attacked, spectators stood in the campus hall. Despite being outnumbered, Pytlick ensured the next increase in volume – and the first four-goal lead (9:5, 13th).
However, the Magdeburgers were by no means impressed and countered with a quick 4-0 run (9:9, 16th) and took the lead for the first time a little later (11:10, 18th). The SCM’s quick defense provoked Pajovic’s team’s first mistakes; the Flensburg team were sometimes no longer able to cope so well with the visitors’ passing speed in defense, and the Schleswig-Holsteiners also weakened themselves with several two-minute penalties.
Novak’s crazy “latten Kempa”
The Wiegert team calmed down the game more and more – and with it the heated atmosphere in the hall. Pytlick was the one who kept Flensburg in the game during this phase and thus paved the way for a crazy finish to the first 30 minutes.
Around 50 seconds before the half-time siren, Lukas Jörgensen threw from the center circle onto the empty Magdeburg goal. The ball hit the crossbar. A missed opportunity? Yes – and no. Domen Novak came flying in from the right and converted the rebound with a kind of “Kempa” to make it 16:15. When Pytlick made it 17:15 with his seventh goal, the “Hölle Nord” was back to full operating temperature.
SCM calm and serene
However, at the beginning of the second half, Magdeburg managed to quickly bring Flensburg’s fire back down to a much smaller flame. And they did so calmly: They took advantage of every passive play indicated right up to the last pass and then executed ice-coldly – Gisli Thorgeir Kristjansson scored the SCM’s first three-goal lead with 22:19 (39th). Grgic and captain Johannes Golla in particular fought against the hosts’ impending defeat.
But the Champions League winner continued to play undeterred and – apart from a brief outburst of anger from Wiegert on the sidelines – gradually had everything under control. Especially since the hosts themselves increasingly lost their composure as they repeatedly became upset about narrow referee decisions that went against them.
This finally played into the hands of the SCM. Albin Lagergren scored plus four goals for the guests eleven minutes before the end of the game (28:24). Pajovic took a time out and his team tried everything. But the Magdeburg team ended the encounter the same way they had played throughout the second half: in the greatest calm. The SG’s first defeat of the season was certain.
