26.05.2016, 12:24
Qualify before goodbye

NEWS REPORT: In their final two matches at the helm of Hungary's women's national team coaches Ambros Martin and Gabor Elek want to secure the qualification to the Women's EHF EURO 2016

Qualify before goodbye

Hungary currently top Group 5 in the Women's EHF EURO 2016 Qualification ahead of bitter rivals Poland, who eliminated them in the World Championship Last 16 last December, but in order to keep the ranking as it is, they cannot afford to keep their remaining two qualifiers lightly.

Hungary travel to Slovakia on 1 June and then play host to Finland on 5 June in a bid to hold on to the group's top spot. Hungary and Poland are currently level with six points each.

The team of interim coaching duo Ambros Martin, head coach of Györi Audi ETO KC, and Gabor Elek, head coach of FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria, won at Poland 27:24, but then Poland had their revenge in Round 4 and snatched a 25:24 win in Hungary. However, in the direct encounter Hungary kept the upper hand.

Martin and Elek will wave goodbye to the national team after the two qualifiers as their contract expires after the EHF EURO Qualification.

As it was announced last week Kim Rasmussen, the current head coach of Poland's women's team and Women's EHF Champions League winners CSM Bucuresti, will take over at the helm.

It is expected that Kim Rasmussen while launch a major makeover of the team – one of his main tasks will be to form a team that is able to qualify for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokio, but first things come first and so it is Martin's and Elek’s job to provide their Danish successor with a chance to shine at the EHF EURO 2016 in Sweden.

Görbicz to miss the last two games

When the Hungarian squad for the last two games was announced, there were no major surprises, and the absence of star playmaker Anita Görbicz shows that the Hungarians are fairly sure to seal the qualification.

They are right in the sense that if Hungary avoid defeat in Michalovce against Slovakia on 1 June, they practically have booked their place at the final tournament in December in Sweden.

Apart from long-term absentees Zsuzsanna Tomori, Bernadett Bognár-Bódi and Gabriella Tóth (who is back in action but has not fully recovered), FTC's line player Piroska Szamoránsky and Anita Bulath, who won the Women's EHF Cup with Dunaújváros, were not included in the squad.

The Hungarian squad for the Women's EHF EURO 2016 qualifiers against Slovakia and Finland

Goalkeeper: Blanka Bíró (Ipress Center Vác), Éva Kiss (Győri Audi ETO), Kinga Janurik (Érd)
Right wing: Viktória Lukács (FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria), Adrienn Orbán (Győri Audi ETO)
Right back: Dóra Hornyák (FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria), Anna Kovács (Dunaújvárosi KKA)
Centre back: Anikó Kovacsics (Győri Audi ETO), Zita Szucsánszki (FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria)
Line player: Noémi Dakos (MTK Budapest), Anett Kisfaludy (Érd), Rea Mészáros (FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria)
Left back: Kinga Klivinyi (Érd), Klára Szekeres (FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria), Krisztina Triscsuk (Dunaújvárosi KKA), Szandra Zácsik (FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria)
Left wing: Ildikó Erdősi (Siófok KC), Nadine Schatzl (FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria)

TEXT: Bence Martha / ts