Dramatic final seconds
Füchse star makes a clear announcement after the trembling finale
An outstanding first half puts the Füchse Berlin on the road to victory in the top game of the Handball Bundesliga; the capital club is now leading by seven goals against SG Flensburg-Handewitt. But in the end it gets very, very tight.
The Füchse Berlin won the top game of the handball Bundesliga and thus caught up with the leaders SC Magdeburg. Berlin won against SG Flensburg-Handewitt with 32:31 (18:12), the team from the capital is now level on points with Magdeburg. The front runner won on Wednesday at the start of the European Championship break at THW Kiel (33:26). Flensburg is already six points behind the top duo in third place.
The game between the two cup semi-finalists in front of 8,496 fans in Berlin's Max-Schmeling-Halle seemed like a one-sided affair for a long time: The Foxes took the lead after 59 seconds through Hans Lindberg and never gave it back. In the meantime the home team led by seven goals. But SG Flensburg-Handewitt fought its way goal by goal. Things got dramatic again in the last two minutes.
With their last goal to make it 32:29, the home team probably benefited from a bad decision by the top German referees Tanja Kuttler and Maike Merz: When Mathias Gidsel threw the ball, the ball did not cross the goal line to the full extent. The Foxes went into the last fifty seconds of the game with a three-goal lead and possession of the ball, but two turnovers and two quick goals from the guests made for a stressful last ten seconds. But SG Flensburg-Handewitt didn't get the ball again.
Gidsel then made a clear announcement after the important success: When asked whether this victory was one in the direction of the Champions League or in the direction of the championship, the Füchse star on the Dyn microphone answered without hesitation: “Championship!”
The Danish vice-European champions Lindberg and Gidsel (6 goals each) together with their compatriot Lasse Andersson (7) were the Berliners' best throwers. On the Flensburg side, Emil Jakobsen, also a silver winner at the European Championships, was the most successful (8). The German national team captain Johannes Golla scored four goals for the guests.
Earlier in the evening, HC Erlangen also achieved an important victory in the relegation battle. Against TBV Lemgo they scored 26:25 (13:15), meaning Erlangen moved past their direct rivals and gained some breathing room.
