After the meager 13th place in the previous season, TSV Hannover-Burgdorf has changed the squad and now has big plans. Lower Saxony’s only handball Bundesliga team started the preparations as the first club. The “warriors” in the team check.
“We have a cool team that will not only cause a sensation on the field,” said Sven-Sören Christophersen, the Recken’s sporting director, confidently. The new efficiency of the team of coach Christian Prokop should be proven for the first time on Thursday (7:05 p.m.). Then the Bundesliga opener against SC DHfK Leipzig is on the program.
Newcomers: A lot of turnover in the squad
The turnover in the squad was high. Six players left the Hanoverians in the summer. However, most of them had not lived up to expectations or apparently passed their zenith. Only left-hander Ivan Martinovic (Melsungen) and right winger Johan Hansen (Flensburg) received offers from more powerful clubs.
In the second case, there was also an interesting exchange of rings: After five years, Marius Steinhauser left Flensburg, is now considered the first force on the right wing at Hannover-Burgdorf and was immediately named the new team captain. His representative comes from Switzerland: Maximilian Gerbl.
Promising new rear axle
The new rear axle of the “Recken” is particularly promising. The tall Belarusian Uladzislau Kulesh and the Montenegrin left-hander Branko Vujovic recently played together at the Polish top club Vive Kielce. The German international Marian Michalczik came in for the playmaker position. The new goalkeeper Dario Quenstedt (from THW Kiel) is an addition to regular goalkeeper Domenico Ebner. The only 20-year-old left-hander Renars Uscins is certified as having great talent. Coach Prokop expressed his satisfaction on NDR: “I was allowed to put together my dream team.”
That’s what coach Christian Prokop is doing
Prokop is in Hanover in his second year as a coach and drummed up his team on July 11th. “The team with the many newcomers should get to know each other quickly, because they have to pull together very quickly in moments of stress,” explained the coach, who loosened up the first few weeks with non-sporting events and an active holiday.
A new team structure and then the maintenance of the automatisms were the focus. “We want to offer emotional, committed handball and present our opponents with different tasks with our different characters,” said Prokop. The goal for the season: a place in the top half of the table, i.e. at least ninth place.
forecast
New names are likely to appear in three or four positions of the regular seven – that’s a major change. On paper, TSV Hannover-Burgdorf definitely has a lot of strong handball players. Will they grow into a real team? In the beginning it certainly takes a little patience. The quality of the players is enough for places nine or eight.
If the new team rides a wave of euphoria right from the start, the season could even end on the European stage. A narrow test match defeat against the German champions SC Magdeburg indicated the potential.
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NDR 2 Sports | 01.09.2022 | 11:03 p.m
