Serbia “swept out of the hall”
DHB team storms into the World Cup quarter-finals
December 9, 2023, 7:35 p.m
The German women’s national handball team is in the quarter-finals of the World Cup after its fifth win in its fifth game. The expected “dirty” game against Serbia lasts a long time, then it becomes clear.
The German handball players reached the quarter-finals early at the World Cup in Scandinavia and secured a ticket for the Olympic qualifying tournament in the spring. Thanks to a significant increase in performance, the DHB selection continued its impressive run of success against Serbia and celebrated its fifth win in the fifth game at 31:21 (14:13). In the long, hard-fought game, Antje Döll was the best German thrower with five goals.
At the end of the preliminary round, national coach Markus Gaugisch’s national team will face title candidate and co-host Denmark in Herning on Monday. In the quarterfinals there could be a manageable duel with Sweden, Hungary or Montenegro. The round of the best eight was the minimum for the German squad. The last World Cup medal was 16 years ago – in 2007 the DHB team won bronze. The performance against Serbia initially gave only limited hope for another medal.
“Full throttle” only after a delay
Gaugisch had not expected “any handball treat” and the national coach was right. 5,000 spectators saw what was expected to be a disgusting game in which the Serbians slowed down and played out their attacks for a very long time. The bottom of the group hardly counterattacked at all. The German defenders around Meike Schmelzer had to be patient.
The defense was compact, but once again the DHB team showed weaknesses in their attacking game. Without playmaker Alina Grijseels (thigh bruise), Germany made too many missed throws in the first few minutes. Gaugisch complained on the sidelines and took the first timeout after 15 minutes. “Full throttle,” the 49-year-old demanded loudly when the score was 5:7.
The crux of the matter is the double majority
The speech worked. Co-captain Emily Bölk in her 100th international match and Maren Weigel turned the game around with powerful throws from the backcourt. Before the eyes of former national coach Henk Groener, the German offensive remained prone to mistakes and left too many promising opportunities unused. The quick game didn’t work.
The intensive video analysis during the break initially did not bring the desired result. The German squad allowed themselves to be lulled by their opponents and found no gaps in the Serbian defense. Five minutes had been played in the second half and Germany was still waiting for their first goal. The fact that the outsider now acted too impetuously and committed several fouls suited the DHB team. With a double majority, Germany turned the game around again and took the lead with five goals for the first time 15 minutes before the end (21:16). The Serbian resistance was broken and Germany extended its lead. With a view to the game, Bölk had called for the Serbians to be “swept out of the hall”. With a little too much trying, I succeeded.