Zagreb defence bolstered by American
Croatia Osiguranje Zagreb's new defensive player for this season is a 22 year old American player Domagoj Sršen. He was born in New York but took his first handball steps in handball club Metković and later on in Bjelovar and Split.
Last summer he came to play for Zagreb where he will replace Jakov Gojun who left for Atlético Madrid. Sršen is the first ever American citizen to play in the VELUX EHF Champions League.
Speaking to ehfCL.com Sršen explains his American background, handball destiny and reveals his dreams.
 ehfCL.com: Domagoj, can you tell us the story how you were born in New York?
Domagoj Sršen: Well, it was all my dad's fault. He left for New York when he was only 16 in search for a better life. His brother was already living there and since the situation in Croatia was very difficult and his parents were barely making ends meet, my dad decided that the best option was to leave and try to make a better life for himself.
He finished school in NY, got his university degree and worked for 20 years as an engineer. In one of his trips back to Croatia he met my mother, they got married and decided to go back to NY together where they had me.
ehfCL.com: You are also a member of USA handball national team. How did that happen?
Domagoj Sršen: That is quite a story, actually. I didn't know there even was an USA national team for some time. I found out about this through internet and decided to e-mail them. They called me one day and asked me to accompany them to a game in Madrid. I only got to know the players I was supposed to play with them on the spot and I really liked it.
It wasn't the handball level I was used to playing but I loved the atmosphere among those people and I felt really good. You see, for American players handball is mostly a hobby and most of them have only two or three years’ experience. In Madrid we played friendly matches with their clubs from lower leagues. Last year we played in the Pan American Games and ended up second to last. Altogether I have played about 20 times for the American national team.
ehfCL.com: Does the average American citizen know what handball is?
Domagoj Sršen: Well no, not really. There is no chance you would find two Americans in NY that could tell you what is handball. Their version of handball is a recreational sport in which you have a small rubber ball that you hit against a wall.
ehfCL.com: If you hadn't become a handball player, what would you be doing now?
Domagoj Sršen: I might have tried my chances in football or basketball. I have never played those two sports professionally but I often play them on my Playstation and I can tell you I'm not bad at all.
ehfCL.com: How come you never played basketball considering it is very popular in the USA?
Domagoj Sršen: Well, even though basketball is very popular there, in my family there were always only handball and football players so it was always a choice between one of that and I liked handball more.
 ehfCL.com: What do you think is the future of handball in USA?
Domagoj Sršen: I think handball might become very popular there and people will love it. Unfortunately, I don't see that happening in the near future because in order to do that they would have to make some significant results and work on popularizing the game itself.
ehfCL.com: Did you know that you are the first American player in VELUX EHF Champions league?
Domagoj Sršen: I was made aware of this just recently. My team-mate from the American national team Mark Ortega sent me an e-mail saying how proud they all are on me for being their compatriot and the first American to play in the highest league in Europe.
ehfCL.com: What does playing in VELUX EHF Champions League mean to you?
Domagoj Sršen: The Champions League is the biggest competition in all sports including handball. This is my first season among handball elite and I am very honoured to play handball on this highest level. I am also proud to be representing my club among best players in the world.
ehfCL.com: Players like Balić, Kopljar, Gojun and Štrlek left Zagreb recently and their places were filled by new young players like you. What do you expect from this new Zagreb in this season?
Domagoj Sršen: I expect to continue working hard and collect more experience. Maybe we can't make a sensational result in the first season but in the next two to three years I expect us to be fighting for the FINAL4.
ehfCL.com: After four games Zagreb have three points and still chance to enter Last 16. What mistakes do you hope to correct and avoid in the upcoming matches?
Domagoj Sršen: We have to work on our concentration, especially in the last minutes of the match. You saw how we lost points in the last minutes against Minsk and Schaffhausen. That is the price we pay for our lack of experience I guess. But yes, that is definitely something we have to fix in the future.
ehfCL.com: Since you still have the chance to enter Last 16, who do you find to be the biggest obstacle for Zagreb on the way to achieving this?
Domagoj Sršen: I find Minsk and Schaffhausen to be our biggest chance. Yes we have lost points on their courts before but I am confident that we will win the home matches against them and make our way to the Last 16.
ehfCL.com: Which handball player had the biggest influence on you and your game?
Domagoj Sršen: I don't have a handball idol but I really like our national team member Ivan Čupić and not only because he is also my cousin. I am very pleased to see Ivan make this great career for himself and it is always a delight to watch him play both in Polish Kielce and in the national team.
ehfCL.com: In which club do you hope to play someday?
That would definitely be Atlético Madrid.
ehfCL.com: Do you hope one day to play for Croatian national team as well?
Absolutely! That would be my dream comes true because of two reasons. First, that is my home country beside the fact I was born in NY and second, Croatia has one of the best teams in the world. I got even more aware of that when I came to play here and saw the difference in quality.
TEXT: Goran Roknić, RK Croatia Osiguranje Zagreb / br
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