Only sixth place - Handball women suffer defeat at the end of the World Cup
Germany's women's handball team bid a frustrated farewell to their Christmas vacation after a disappointing finish to the World Championship.
The team of national coach Markus Gaugisch delivered a weak performance in their last tournament appearance in Herning and finished the World Championship in sixth place after losing 26:30 (7:16) to the Netherlands.
The best World Championship result since winning bronze 16 years ago was initially little consolation. "It's tough for us right now, everyone is empty. The defeat is sobering and hurts," said Gaugisch. "Individually and as a team, we didn't manage to hold our own today."
The best scorers in front of around 2,000 spectators were left wing Antje Döll with seven goals and co-captain Alina Grijseels (6). "The result flatters us. It wasn't what we had planned," said Döll. "Of course we're disappointed and frustrated now. But overall, we don't have to be dissatisfied."
Paris ticket in sight
The focus is now on the upcoming Olympic qualifiers in the spring. The DHB team will face Montenegro, Slovenia and Paraguay. The top two in the tournament will secure a ticket to the Summer Games in Paris. "We are full of hope to be back for the first time since 2008," said DHB Sports Director Axel Kromer.
He gave the team a decent report card for the World Championship before the kick-off of the match for fifth place. "We have taken a step forward. As a collective, the team's average performance has improved significantly," Kromer summarized. However, the DHB team was unable to confirm this at the end against the Netherlands.
As in the crushing 20:27 defeat against Sweden in the quarter-finals, when the first goal was only scored after 14 minutes, the German team overslept in the opening phase. This time, it took twelve and a half minutes before Grijseels scored with a seven-meter penalty to make it 1:6. "We have to ask ourselves why we played so badly against Sweden and the Netherlands. That can't happen to us if we want to be among the top four nations at some point," said the backcourt player.
The DHB team's attacking play did not improve after that. In fact, the next shock moment came midway through the first half, when backcourt player Viola Leuchter was injured through no fault of her opponent and limped off the court with a contorted face. The 19-year-old was taken to hospital for a thorough examination. "We're very sad about the injury," said Gaugisch.
Limited resources on the day
The absence further weakened the already unsettled German team. After 22 minutes, the deficit was eight goals for the first time at 4:12. At the front, Gaugisch's team repeatedly failed to score due to the strong Dutch goalkeeper Yara Ten Holte, while they left too many gaps for their opponents at the back. The game was already decided by the break.
Despite the hopeless situation, the DHB team never gave up. However, it remained a one-sided affair even after the changeover. At times, Germany even trailed by eleven goals. Gaugisch repeatedly tried to motivate his players on the touchline, but their resources were limited on this day.
"It went very differently than I had expected. I assumed that we would pull ourselves together again and deliver a game at eye level," admitted co-captain Emily Bölk self-critically. It was only when the Oranje team let their guard down in the final phase, sensing that victory was assured, that the German team were able to make the result a little friendlier.
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Source: www.stern.de
