SC Magdeburg has come a big step closer to the German handball championship by beating Füchse Berlin in the top game.
The sovereign Bundesliga leader won the self-proclaimed “East Derby” against the pursuer 28:27 (14:14) and is confident about the rest of the program: The difficult games against all title rivals are already behind the SCM.
The comfortable lead over THW Kiel is six points with seven games to go, but two of them were in danger for a long time. The hosts couldn’t get the outstanding Hans Lindberg, top scorer in the league, under control, the Dane scored a total of 13 goals – a season record. The best thrower from Magdeburg was Gisli Kristjansson with five goals in front of 6066 spectators.
While the Magdeburgers were in rhythm after the cup weeks, the foxes came into the game from a three-week break, but with momentum.
The 40-year-old Lindberg in particular was hard to stop at first, the right winger scored seven of the first eight goals in Berlin, the three-goal lead (11:8) was deserved, but was gone again at the break.
After the defeat in the cup final against Kiel and a sovereign victory in the first leg of the quarter-finals of the European League, the SCM fought for the “very important points” (coach Bennet Wiegert).
Magdeburg also showed comeback qualities in the second half and caught up a four-goal deficit (21:25). Kristjansson scored the decisive goal.