On Saturday, Sportunion Leoben hosted MADx WAT Atzgersdorf in the Leoben/Donawitz sports hall as part of the HLA CHALLENGE East main round. The visitors from Vienna prevailed after sixty minutes with a score of 30:33 (14:19), taking the two points from Upper Styria, where the home team’s defensive weaknesses were once again evident.
Before the match, Franz Jantscher, Member of Parliament and member of the works council of voestalpine Stahl Donawitz, presented
the team with the match ball. Leoben started the game with great energy but quickly fell behind. By halftime, they were already down by five goals (14:19). Particularly noticeable were their defensive weaknesses in the center block, which the visitors consistently exploited. The two Viennese players, Mischi (10 goals) and Bajgoric (11 goals), scored a combined 21 goals, making them the key players for Atzgersdorf.
Leoben showed glimpses of promise in attack. After the break, they finally managed to score some quick goals, primarily through Mustafic, Jadron, and Pinter, who each contributed five goals from open play. Their improved attacking performance brought the home team closer to Vienna, and the game became very tight towards the end. In the 57th minute, Lubo Jadron narrowed the gap to 30-31 for Leoben, but it would be their last goal. MADx WAT Atzgersdorf added two more goals, resulting in a final score of 30-33. Leoben’s late chance of salvaging points was thanks to goalkeeper Daniel Reiter , who, despite conceding many goals, was voted Leoben’s best player. His numerous saves kept his team in the game for a long time, but without the support of the defense, even he was ultimately powerless.
Squad and goals: Lombès-Birkenheuer, Reiter, Bezovnik; Kovacech (6/3), Jadron (5), Mustafic (5), Pinter (5), Schweiger (4), Hinterreiter (2), Typolt (2), Kvarits (1), Edegger, Lechner, Scheer, Stromberger
Best Player Award: Daniel Reiter (Handball Sportunion Leoben), Igor Vuckovic (MADx WAT Atzgersdorf)
Reviews of the game
René Kramer (Coach, Sportunion Leoben): “I don’t know why we train and watch videos if we don’t then take the chances and shots we envision. Our goalie Daniel Reiter kept us in the game for a long time today. Unfortunately, we have big problems in the middle block and always concede too many goals there.”
Andreas Czech (Coach, MADx WAT Atzgersdorf): “A compliment to the team! We implemented what we set out to do. Leoben fought their way back into the game and it got close again. Overall, however, I believe we deserved the victory more tonight.”
Despite a 32-23 away defeat, Leoben’s Future team delivered a very strong performance against WAT Atzgersdorf on Saturday. The game remained wide open until the final seconds, with the Viennese team ultimately edging ahead 38-36. Understandably, the Leoben players were disappointed after this nail-biter, but they will continue working on their strengths in the next training session to take the next step in their upcoming match in Eggenburg.
Squad and goals: Bezovnik; Mayr (10/6), Schüller (7), Lausecker (6), Kislick (3), Kvarits (3), Holec (2/1), Stromberger (2), Trafella (2), Wegscheider (1), Donossa, Draxler
