With a skeleton squad and several U19 players, HSV Hamburg suffered the expected defeat in the Handball Bundesliga, but sold themselves dearly.
The North Germans, plagued by numerous failures, lost at TSV Hannover-Burgdorf with 27:29 (13:11) and showed a respectable performance. The league had previously rejected a request from HSV to move the duel.
Hannover thus celebrated a lackluster but enormously important victory in the relegation battle. Among other things, Hamburg had to do without goalkeepers Johannes Bitter (gastrointestinal infection) and Jens Vortmann (Corona) and had traveled to Lower Saxony with four U19 players. Only seven professionals were available.
“We will go off a picture that is not worthy of the Bundesliga,” said HSVH Managing Director Sebastian Frecke before the game. But far from it: Hamburg even led 21:18 and fell behind for the first time five minutes before the end, in the end there was a lack of strength. Mats Quardfasel (19) and middleman Max Niemann (18), who came from the A youth, each scored two goals.
HBW Balingen-Weilstetten meanwhile won the basement duel against tail light TuS N-Lübbecke 26:21 (11:7) and climbed to 16th place. Balingen is also only one point behind TVB Stuttgart, who at the Rhein-Neckar Löwen with 23 :28 (11:16) lost.