Game lost, goal achieved: The newly crowned European League winner MT Melsungen has secured a place in the premier handball league for the first time in the club’s history – thanks to a clear 28:39 (16:18) defeat against Füchse Berlin.
Because the victory can no longer take away the important second place in the table from the capital city, the Hessians are now planning to take part in the Champions League.
However, what was responsible for the bizarre scenario on Thursday evening was not entirely the performance of Melsung, who gave their opponents a balanced game at least until half-time, but rather the new rules: If the Füchse had lost their second place in the table to SG Flensburg-Handewitt on the last matchday and then won the Champions League in mid-June, Melsungen would not have been in the premier class last weekend despite the great triumph – also the first club title in history qualified.
With the win, the Berliners are now two points ahead of their pursuers Flensburg – and the North Germans can no longer catch up with their significantly better goal difference in the direct showdown on the last matchday.
In Melsungen, coach Nicolej Krickau’s team turned up the heat, especially in the second half – in the first five minutes after the restart, last year’s German champions decided the game in their favor after a furious 5-1 run. The best thrower of the game was world handball player Mathias Gidsel with nine goals.
Flensburg, which previously fulfilled its duty against ThSV Eisenach with 36:31 (21:18), only remains in the second-class European League.