The Czech handball players were clear at the Junior World Championships before the last match of the basic group. They need to win seven goals over the Romanians so that their opponents jump over the score table and advance to the eight-final stage of the championship. And in the end, they met the goal with all their might, winning 32:25 in the dramatic finish.
Goalkeeper Adéla Srpová also played a big role in this, standing in the goal after the draw’s first half. “We got into the lauf, we don’t even remember what happened in the second half. We have to let it go,” Srpová laughed in an interview after the match.
Before the match with Romania, you knew how many goals you would have to win. How is he preparing for it?
We went into a match with the fact that we never defeated the Romanians. It was everything or nothing and we take everything. It must have been a drama. Why make it easy when it’s complicated until the last second to keep people entertained. To win by seven in the first half, they would probably all leave the hall. We knew we were going to win, so we were all set up. In any case, after losing to Angola, it was more difficult to concentrate. On the other hand, it may have helped that we got such a spanking. We wanted to give it back to the people who are watching and supporting us. I think we deserved the move.
After the first half, the score was even at 14:14, the ride started after a break, for the first time in the championship you got into the goal. When did you find out you were going to catch?
I learned that I was going to the gate after the match with Angola. We still had a meeting at the hotel with the evaluation of the match and as captains we sat down with suggestions that we would like to discuss with the coach. He told me I was going to catch during the match. He made a decision and then the goalkeeper’s coach called me and said that I should prepare. It was the only thing for me to sit down for videos, preparation and work as always.
It was crucial to catch on the match as soon as possible, wasn’t it?
It is important for every goalkeeper to catch right from the start, the girls helped me a lot. Also by the atmosphere in the team before and during the match. The girls defended terribly in defense, sacrificing themselves for the team. I am proud of them and they deserve thanks. But catching fast was crucial also because we had to win by seven and we drew at half time. We had to start pedaling even more in the back and pulling the balls forward as fast as possible, on the contrary, we had to play patiently in a gradual attack. It worked out for us. We bet on everything we have, and it was proven by team performance.
How was the very first feeling when you found out it would work out and move on?
We all calculated a bit until the last second. We were a little confused by how much it actually had to be. We recalculated it, but Romania’s last seven were at 32:24 and didn’t change anything. Although the Romanians have reduced, time has moved us forward. Incredible joy has started, an indescribable moment, it is really impossible to describe it… Something unreal and beautiful.
Is it one of the most emotional winnings of your career?
I think definitely for all of us. We are in the last championship together like this, we met as a great group. We pull on one rope. And this is not a cliché, but a purely fact. These are really strong moments for us that it will only help us in the next fights. Last year, the Romanians took us one or two goals ahead, we came across them in almost every championship and tournament we played. Now happiness has finally turned to our side. We are very happy for the procedure and we will try to get as far as possible.
By the way, the coach said that you were in such a state in the second half that you will not even remember anything…
I have to admit that I belong to the half of the team that really doesn’t remember anything. I have to look at it to be able to accept it at all and move on. After the interview, I let her go, then I can tell what all happened. When the girls and I met at the hotel in the evening and we were wondering what had happened, about five of us didn’t know at all. We were on the run.
And how do you enjoy the wave of support that broke out in the Czech Republic?
I am very glad that we succeeded in all this and we advanced through such a strong cuff. The fact that people support us is something unreal, we really appreciate all the support and energy that comes to us. After the match with Angola, everyone was a critic, cheering only after winning. I’m a little sorry for our mentality, but there are certainly those who trust us and support us in every situation.
The next program starts on Monday, Germany is waiting for you (20:30), then you will come across Slovenia in the group among the best.
We are still a little amazed that we succeeded. We must not let ourselves sleep, two more difficult opponents are waiting for us. But if we play for everything as against Romania, we have it.
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