Coach Martin Schwalb had already warned when he took office in October that it would take a certain amount of time to lead the handball Bundesliga team HC Erlangen out of the bottom of the table. But he also left no doubt that he would succeed. He sees the potential in the club and the performance of the players in training. But Schwalb has been in the business long enough, he also reminded us that “handball is a results sport”.
The necessary results are now slowly setting in, the redeeming 28:24 home win against Göppingen from the previous week was followed by a 25:25 draw against newly promoted Bietigheim on Thursday evening. When Schwalb took over, Erlangen was bottom of the table, but now the Middle Franconians are in 16th place, one point better than Stuttgart, which is in the penultimate and therefore first relegation spot.
The new goalkeeper Dario Quenstedt shows his potential for the first time
However, the performance against newly promoted Bietigheim was not enough to be able to speak of a longed-for turnaround. Rather, the team was once again unable to live up to its potential and inconsistency remained the only constant in Erlangen’s game. While backcourt player Marek Nissen with nine goals and playmaker Sander Överjordet, who skilfully set the scene for the people around him, were the guarantees of victory against Göppingen, both remained pale against Bietigheim. After all, Antonio Metzner, who is the only player alongside captain Christopher Bissel to show a consistently high level, had a good evening with eight goals. Circle runner Tobias Wagner (7 goals) and goalkeeper Dario Quenstedt, who Erlangen had reactivated for Klemen Ferlin, who had moved to the top Polish club Kielce, also earned good marks.
Despite the recent point gains, Erlanger’s situation remains precarious, and their poor exploitation of opportunities in particular regularly stands in their way. The guest appearance at VfL Gummersbach follows on Sunday – an opponent where it will probably not be enough for two or three players to be at their best.
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