The German handball players gained self-confidence for the World Cup in Scandinavia with a friendly win against Hungary.
Around three weeks before the highlight of the season, the DHB selection won on Sunday (November 5th, 2023) in the Munich Olympic Hall with 29:25 (14:9) and celebrated their seventh victory in a row. In front of the large handball crowd of around 10,000 fans Backcourt player Emily Bölk was the best German thrower with six goals.
National coach: “An amazing experience”
“It’s great that we were able to continue our winning streak. This helps us to develop a confidence in winning games. It was a good performance by the team teams“, praised national coach Markus Gaugisch on ZDF. You have “a few too many missed throws” had, “But overall it was a consistently good performance teams and further development with a view to the World Cup.” At the same time he enthused: “The game in front of this backdrop was an incredible experience for all the players.”
Goalkeeper Sarah Wachter makes a strong save
The DHBteam initially benefited from numerous technical errors by the guests and quickly built a four-goal lead. As a result, a lack of concentration crept into the Germans’ attacking game. The fact that the hosts still went into halftime with a comfortable lead was thanks to goalkeeper Sarah Wachter. The 23-year-old from Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund parried seven throws from the Hungarians in the first half.
After the break the game developed into an even game. The guests increasingly found a way through the German defense and came within two goals around 15 minutes before the end of the game. National coach Markus Gaugisch reacted with a time out because his team’s game was becoming more and more error-prone. In the final phase, the DHB selection tightened up again so that victory was no longer in danger.
Handball day not in international calendar
Because the game on “Handball Day” was not part of the international calendar, the DHB selection had to do without some regulars playing abroad, such as goalkeeper Katharina Filter. The injured Alicia Stolle was missing in the backcourt.
The World Cup in Denmark, Norway and Sweden begins for the German handball players on November 30th with the game against Japan. Other group opponents are Iran and Poland. Before that there are two test matches against Sweden.