Handball
“Too nice and relaxed”: DHB women not yet in World Cup shape
Completed her 100th international match against Ukraine: Xenia Smits. photo
© Marco Wolf/dpa
The German handball players are self-critical after the mandatory win against Ukraine. But the thoughts are also in Israel.
After the arduous start to the European Championship qualification, national coach Markus Gaugisch didn’t want to be too strict with the Germans Bypass handball women.
Celebrant Xenia Smits found clear words for this after the lackluster 31:24 (15:14) win against Ukraine. “Of course we’re not happy with the first half. We made wrong decisions, didn’t play with full conviction and weren’t consistent enough. Maybe we were too nice and relaxed at the beginning,” summed up the backcourt player after her 100th international match.
Co-captain Alina Grijseels – the best German thrower with seven goals – also didn’t want to sugarcoat the poor performance in the first 20 minutes. “We weren’t alert in the attack, we were too hectic in the counter-attack, we made simple mistakes and unsettled ourselves,” said the backcourt player, listing the deficiencies in the initial phase. Left winger Antje Döll also criticized herself: “That was a bad start. We definitely have to do better in the future.”
Gaugisch did not go unnoticed by the weaknesses of his team, which was already five goals behind at 5:10. Nevertheless, he preferred to emphasize the positive after the final whistle. “What I really liked is that we kept calm. We stayed cool and focused on our strengths,” praised the 50-year-old and stated: “A win like this always brings self-confidence.”
Game against Israel canceled
The German players would have liked to have improved that further on Saturday against Israel. However, due to the current political situation, the game was canceled by the European Handball Federation, which is why Gaugisch’s protégés went to the training hall on Friday instead of to Tel Aviv.
“It’s crazy when you see what’s happening there. Handball is a minor matter. In Israel it’s about survival. In Germany, on the other hand, we live like in the land of milk and honey,” said Gaugisch and added: “Our thoughts and hopes that there – Just like in Ukraine – there will soon be peace again, we are above everything. Handball is a small thing.”
Smits also expressed understanding for the cancellation of the second group game and sympathy for those affected. “Of course it’s a shame that the game is canceled. But with what’s happening in the world right now, there are much more important things than a handball game. That’s completely unimportant at the moment. We hope that everything will resolve itself in peace again soon,” said she.
For the DHB selection, preparation for the World Cup continues at the beginning of November with a training course and the international match against Hungary in Munich. In the title fights from November 30th to December 17th in Denmark, Norway and Sweden, the German team is aiming for at least seventh place, which entitles them to take part in the Olympic qualification. Smits is looking forward to the highlight of the year with a good feeling: “We will approach the task with fun and hopefully take a step forward.”