Third international title in club history
TBV wins the 2010 EHF European Cup
A narrow 28:30 (10:14) defeat earned TBV enough points to triumph against the Kadetten Schaffhausen. Kraus had a hand in a total of 12 goals.
TBV began the game in the extremely packed and noisy Schweizersbildhalle that was full to the rafters with Martin Galia in goal, Jens Bechtloff, Ferenc Ilyés, Daniel Kubes, Vignir Svavarsson, Rolf Hermann and Florian Kehrmann. Michael Kraus and Martin Strobel came on for Ilyés and Kubes in the offensive. Although Galia was onto Jan Filip from the very first throw, a technical error ultimately brought the hosts the first goal of the game. Kehrmann scored a rebound to equalise (1:1; 4th min.). Both teams seemed somewhat nervous. Each goal scored by the Kadetten was celebrated loudly, an opportunity used by Hermann to bring TBV its first lead in the 8th minute (3:2).
Hermann was undoubtedly the man in the opening minutes, netting his third goal to boost the score to 4:3 shortly after. The Kadetten remained on the ball however and Liniger sneaked a penalty shot past Galia in the 10th minute (4:5), which was again countered by Hermann. Ursic brought the Kadetten back into the offensive at which point Ilyés had to leave the pitch for two minutes for shirt pulling. The Kadetten instantly took advantage of this to net the 5:7. Svavarsson countered, but Stojanovic re-established the 2-goal lead for the hosts (6:8; 15th min.) and Patrail followed up with the 6:9 less than a minute later. TBV really had to be careful that their rivals didn't gain too much of a lead!
A called passive warning was followed by yet another next miss; TBV did not seem as with it as they had one week earlier. Carsten Lichtlein had meanwhile come on for Galia in goal, and Glandorf for Hermann in the right back position. Both teams committed a series of technical errors at this stage in the game. Kubes was awarded the first time penalty of the game in the 21st minute, although TBV's defence remained strong and didn't let any goals through. Kraus instead netted the 8:9 (22nd min.) when the team was a man down. In the 24th minute, Starczan managed to sneak the 8:10 past Lichtlein who subsequently blocked the counterattack. Volker Mudrow called his green card immediately after this; his team simply couldn't keep its edge in the offensive and really struggled against the Kadetten's extremely compact defence. The next offensive followed, but Svavarsson's shot hit the post. Kukucka meanwhile scored the 8:11 (25th min.) in a countermove and the Kadetten's #4 got a goal in after TBV's next miss from the second wave to bring the score to 8:12 and the spectators into uproar. TBV found itself under real pressure for the very first time – and all the more so when Gustavsson blocked the next big chance. Kadetten trainer Hrachovec took his time-out at this point, after 26:15 minutes of play. TBV urgently needed to catch up but remained unfocussed in the offensive, leading to Stojanovic being the next to score (8:13; 29th min.). Preiß finally netted a goal to reassure TBV's fans, but Stojanovic also got one in for the Kadetten before Mocsai was able to score the all-important 10-14 just seconds before the half-time break. It was clear to all spectators in the hall that the game could still go either way at this point.
Hermann came back on at the beginning of the second half, Preiß remained on the circle and Mocsai held the centre position. Kraus was immediately on the case, getting in the 11:14, an important start that helped settle TBV's nerves somewhat despite Ursic then being able to score for the Kadetten from the circle. Kraus kept his nerve in the penalty throw that followed and had no mercy for Gustavsson. TBV seemed more determined now.
Mudrow brought Galia back on when Filip successfully scored the 12:17 in a counterattack (34th min.); the good opening phase seemed to be over. Bechtloff finally managed to reduce the hosts' lead to 13:17, and Filip was awarded a time penalty for a push from behind. Kraus dived through the gap with determination to net the 14:17, bringing TBV back into the game and Hermann's neat throw into the right-hand corner then brought the 15:17 (37th min.). Galia went from strength to strength and Kraus even managed to narrow the lead to 16:17. The Kadetten rebelled, refusing to surrender to their fate at this early phase, even if a catch-up similar to in Flensburg would be necessary following the 18:19 in the 43rd minute. Galia again prevented this however, blocking a penalty throw attempt by Liniger, and Mocsai then made a nice throw to Preiß who followed through to score the 19:19 equaliser. The 150 TBV fans then boldly made themselves heard. And when Schmetz got the 20:19 in, the final score seemed to have been decided. Hrachovec called his second time-out after 44:27 minutes of play.
The Kadetten's defence responded by bringing Ursic forward. Gustavsson saved a throw from Hermann, but Galia kept TBV on course for a win during the 20:21 against Stojanovic. The game went back and forth, with an EHP Cup victory for TBV seeming a possibility when the score stood at 22:22 in the 49th minute. The hosts continued to fight with all their might, but TBV meanwhile had the upper hand in the offensive that was required in this game. Kraus scored the deciding goal in the 53rd minute – his eighth of the game – to bring the score to 24:24.
The 24:26 brought the spectators in the Schweizersbildhalle to their feet once more; Schaffhausen played more offensively in one final desperate bid, but Hermann's 26:27 (56th min.) quashed their final ray of hope. The remaining minutes saw some lively play during which both teams were awarded time penalties. This did not detract from what was an entirely fair game overall played out in a fantastic atmosphere. And so began a long night of celebration for TBV in Schaffhausen.
Comments on the game:
Volker Mudrow: We are of course utterly thrilled to have won this title. We were under a lot of pressure at half-time, but subsequently played as a real team, which is the only way that a title like this be won. Mimi Kraus put on an outstanding performance in the second half, but I also take my hat off to Tamas Mocsai who was 100% there when we needed him. And the same goes for the rest of the team. We really earned the title here today, and have been able to top off a season that has not been easy one.
Petr Hrachovec: Congratulations to TBV Lemgo who really deserved to win the EHF European Cup. It is of course a shame to win the game but lose overall. As we already said beforehand, we went into the game fully committed and wanted to use our opportunity even though we practically already lost the final during the 1st leg in Lemgo. We made TBV sweat, but at the end of the day it simply wasn't enough. TBV deserved to win, but we can certainly also look back with pride on what has been a fantastic season.