Second game, second victory – the German women’s handball team passed their first endurance test at the World Championship with flying colours. The team of national coach Michael Biegler defeated the Asian champions South Korea in Leipzig with 23:18 (11:10) and is thus clearly on course for the second place of Group D in the last sixteen.
The best thrower of the German Handball Federation’s (DHB) selection was the outstanding Friederike Gubernatis with seven goals. With a further victory on Tuesday (18.00 hrs/Sport1) against Serbia’s equal points leader in the standings, the sixth place in the European Championship would have reached the knockout round ahead of schedule.
“Hats off to the ladies. After a torn up start, the team really got into the game and earned the victory with a lot of passion and emotion. We can look forward to the next gigs,”DHB Vice President Bob Hanning told SID.
After the shock over Kim Naidzinavicius’s loss of the tournament, who had suffered a rupture of the cruciate ligament in the opening match against Cameroon (28:15) after 140 seconds, the hosts did not come into play at all. The German coverage lacked the necessary aggressiveness and had considerable trouble with the agile South Koreans.
Goalkeeper Clara Woltering did not receive a ball in front of 5794 spectators – the result was a 5:8 deficit (13th). Biegler responded and sent Katja Kramarczyk into the goal and his ladies rose. Until the break, the DHB team only allowed two goals per seven-metre and stayed out of the field for a total of 20 minutes without conceding a goal.
The German attacking game was not flawless without the exceptional talent of Emily Bölk (foot injury), but here too the DHB selection increased with the good Friederike Gubernatis in the course of the first half. Circular Julia Behnke equalled at first (9:9/25.) and two minutes later she managed to secure the first German lead against the South Koreans, who had surprisingly defeated runners-up Netherlands (24:22).
Biegler followed the game of his team as usual emotionally on the sidelines. The national coach said that he was always talking about moves, but also had a calming effect on his players.
Svenja Huber made the first two-goal lead (14:12/39.) by counter-attacking the tempo. In the goal, Kramarczyk, a strong ex-Leipzig player, was still relying on the goalkeeper, so the DHB team preliminarily dropped to 19:15 (48th).
Biegler had nominated left-hander Alicia Stolle from HSG Blomberg-Lippe for backroom player Naidzinavicius on Sunday morning. Meanwhile Wunderkind Bölk is still on hold “She will get all the time in the world. We have a responsibility for her further career path. I don’t send a player to the field where no one can answer for it,”said Biegler.
Meanwhile, there are increasing signs that Bölk will be able to join the team in the course of the preliminary round. Maybe on Tuesday against Serbia.
South Korea: Ju, Park – Sim (5 goals), Lee (5/3 seven-metre), Kang (3), Ryu (3/1), Jo (1/1), Choi (1)
Germany: Woltering, Kramarczyk – Gubernatis (7), Behnke (4), Geschke (3), Huber (3/1), Mansson (2), Loerper (2), Stolle (1), Smits (1), Fischer, Karolius, Lauenroth, Wohlbold, Klein
Time penalties: 3:5
Seven-meter quota: 5/7:1/2
Spectators in Leipzig: 5794
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