After eleven years of abstinence and difficult years, ASV Hamm-Westfalen is back in the Handball Bundesliga. For the underdog, the goal can only be “relegation”.
A mammoth task awaits the newcomer in the very first game: on Sunday (September 4th, 2022) he is going to the German champions SC Magdeburg (2 p.m.). But managing director Thomas Lammers is not wrong: “We’re looking forward to it,” says the club’s ex-player in an interview with WDR. “The boys can play freely and should enjoy it,” said Lammers.
ASV Managing Director Thomas Lammers
At the last Bundesliga appearance of ASV, when the club was still known as HSG Ahlen-Hamm, they started at home against Großwallstadt. The 37-year-old was there as a player back then and remembers: “It was a game that you had to win. We also played well, but lost by a goal, so the mood afterwards was pretty depressed.” This time it’s exactly the opposite – in Hamm, the mood would probably not suffer even if the SCM suffered a big defeat.
ASV with a realistic look
In any case, things are viewed realistically in Westphalia: “The chances that we’ll stay in the first division aren’t very high,” says Lammers. Nevertheless, everything will be done to ensure that the club plays first-class in the coming year, but: “We’re not going to do it come hell or high water,” said the managing director. It is more important to place the sporting success that ASV is currently enjoying on a solid economic basis.
After the last Bundesliga relegation eleven years ago, the syndicate with the Ahlener SG broke up. The hoped-for sporting and economic effects of the merger of the two clubs did not materialize. The result was difficult years, even bankruptcy was in the room. But today, the ASV no longer suffers from these effects.
Managing Director Lammers: “The euphoria is there!”
The hammers are also moving in the turbulent currents caused by events such as the corona pandemic, the Ukraine war and rising energy costs. In this situation, the current enthusiasm for promotion in the club’s environment is helpful. From the fans to the media interest to the sponsors: “The euphoria is there, absolutely,” said Lammers happily.
1,100 season ticket sales for the home games in the 2,600-seat arena bear witness to this. The enthusiasm in the environment could also be an important factor for the development of the team of young coach Michael Lerscht.
The 38-year-old Lerscht, who has been under contract with ASV since 2020, is a novice coach on the top floor of German handball. An important factor for promotion last season was the harmony in the team.
When asked whether this calculation can also go one floor higher, Lammers says: “It has to.” The transition went smoothly despite the eight newcomers. The homogeneity can still be found in the team, which was also very important when signing newcomers: “It has to be the basis for the success that we want to have in the first division,” explains the managing director.
Coach Lerscht: Working meticulously and with the right approach
Lammers is not worried about the young age of his coach. “I’ve played for eight years myself, and I’ve rarely seen a coach who works so meticulously, has such a good relationship with his players, but also the appropriate distance,” says Lammers.
ASV coach Michael Lerscht
In this way, the coach finds the right words among the players, who are sometimes hardly younger than himself, and reaches them. The eight newcomers will also benefit from this, including Savvas Savvas (came from Großwallstadt) and Björn Zintel (came from Balingen), two players who wore the ASV jersey before.
Zintel injured, a new player could come
The latter suffered a training injury to his left shoulder in July – the playmaker will not be able to play at the start of the league. The hammers are therefore still looking around on the player market. “We’re still looking, but haven’t found the right one yet,” says Lammers, who doesn’t want to break his knees: “We need a player who can help us immediately. If we don’t find him, we won’t find one either recommit.”
The Hammer passed the first test without the Zintel. In the DHB Cup, the ASV won 35:25 (13:13) at the third division Wilhelmshaven HV at the weekend and showed a sovereign performance, especially in the second half.
