STORY OF THE SEASON - RUSSIA: While Rostov-Don took the title as expected, Kuban snatched bronze after coach Evgenii Trefilov returned from his three-month layoff following heart surgery
Trefilov’s comeback helps Kuban to third place
They were seen as the big favourites for the Russian league title, and Rostov-Don duly confirmed their status by claiming their third straight championship.
In their first season under coach Ambros Martin, Rostov had a perfect record as they won all matches in the regular season as well as in the play-offs.
In the final series Rostov beat Lada Togliatti, while the bronze medals went to Kuban after defeating Zvezda Zvenigorod in the third-place games. This series was quite an emotional moment for Kuban coach Evgenii Trefilov, who returned on the team’s bench after a three-month absence.
The 63-year-old Trefilov, who is also Russia’s national coach, was hospitalized in February after he felt unwell before the Women’s EHF Cup match against Besancon. He underwent heart surgery and was released from hospital in March, but stayed in a sanatorium for rehabilitation for a few weeks after that.
In early May Trefilov led his first training after the break, and two weeks later he was back on his usual place on the bench, seeing his team beat Zvenigorod and finish third in the league.
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Sergey Nikolaev / ew