Manchester Edge Past Rivals in League Thriller

MANCHESTER Handball Club scraped past rivals Nottingham University 19-18 to maintain top spot in the Northern Section of the Men’s English League.

With just eight players available for the clash, Manchester’s difficult task was made even harder when Rybak was injured early in the game while scoring his first and last goal of the game.

Nottingham took an early lead and went 4-1 ahead before Manchester reacted and drew level.

The Manchester team looked slow. Apart from Liatouji who stood out with eight goals and goalkeeper Belus, the rest of the Mancunians played below their normal level and rarely presented a serious threat to a Nottingham team with an in-form goalkeeper who made seven six-metre saves.

But the Mancunians' defence was strong and a few fast breaks allowed them to build a lead of four goals at half time (11-7).

The second half saw Nottingham narrow the deficit to one or two goals for most of the match and with three minutes left, the three-goal advantage was narrowed down to just one with two consecutive passive play offences dished out to Manchester.

The last seconds of the game were tense, but Manchester kept the lead and overall deserved to win this match.

Elsewhere in the Northern Section, Salford remain unbeaten this season after notching up a 37-22 victory over Deva at Sugden in Manchester.

Great Britain Under-21 ace Aden Woodall scored 16 goals in the win, while fellow GB youngster Jack Hennessey added eight goals.

And the University of Manchester beat Liverpool Speke Garston 27-20 at Greenbank.

* Title hopefuls Nottingham University will be aiming to boost their bid for the Northern Section when they play host to rivals Salford at home on Sunday.

Unbeaten Salford will need to be at their best for the clash against ever-improving Nottingham, who will be aiming to get back to winning ways after losing by just one goal to table-topping Manchester last weekend.

Elsewhere, at Greenbank Academy in Liverpool Deva take on Manchester university, while Liverpool Wolves play Manchester.

And in the South, Great Dane take on Olympia in the Women’s League at 12noon at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre before Olympia and Great Dane men’s teams meet at 2pm at the same venue.

WANTED! Crowd for BBC English League Filming

BBC Sport will be filming this Sunday’s English League matches at Crystal Palace - and you’re invited to come along too!

The BBC cameras will be recording both the Women’s League clash between Great Dane and Olympia at 12noon, as well as the Men’s League Olympia v Great Dane match which follows at 2pm.

The project is a test transmission, with the BBC trialling new technologies with a view to live web streaming of future Great Britain matches.

Entry to the games is free, and the venue will be decked out to make it look as professional as possible.
Come along and make some noise!

Coaching Plans Receive A Boost

ENGLAND Handball’s plans to develop the sport in communities across the country took a major step forward last week when they staged the first of their coaching and development days.

The project aims to give coaches and teachers the tools they need to get more kids than ever before playing handball, and the scheme has won the backing of the European Handball Federation who have generously provided 45,000 Euros (£37,600) for the three-year project.

More than 40 representatives from clubs across England attended the first session at the Greenbank Academy in Liverpool, where the main speaker was Roman Filz from Austria, a top EHF lecturer in child and youth coaching who addressed the meeting for eight hours.

“This is the first step in encouraging our clubs to work with local schools and youth groups,” said EHA chairman Mike Briers. “The aim is to run regular weekly sessions for children at under-13 and under-15 level and integrating them into their club structure.”

The EHF funding will allow England Handball to train and educate present members with two sessions each year, develop the necessary coaching skills required to work with young people, purchase equipment, fund initial sports hall hire costs and support the EHA's desire to bring in expertise from mainland Europe.

Ten clubs were represented at the initial session, and Briers added: “It was an excellent day and all representatives enjoyed the sessions and felt that they had learnt a lot.

“It is anticipated the Clubs will soon be able to stage inter club fixtures and hopefully and end of season Festival or Tournament.”

Ruislip Celebrating Two Wins

RUISLIP Eagles are celebrating a double victory this week after both their men’s and women’s teams secured victories over title contenders.

Last year’s EHA Cup winners, Ruislip Eagles men (pictured) beat last year’s league champions Great Dane 27-26.

Leading by seven goals at half time thanks largely to a strong defence and good performance by keeper Andrius Rinkevicius, the Eagles faced a backlash from Great Dane after the break, but just clung on for victory.

And Ruislip women also won, 24-20, over league newcomers but title contenders, Deva from Chester.
Eleven goals from Telek helped the Eagles to victory, but they had to fight back from a 10-14 half time deficit.

Elsewhere, in the men’s league Liverpool Wolves won 36-10 over Speke Garston, while Manchester edged last Deva 29-27.

Olympia overcame Cambridge 24-30, while in the women’s league, Thames beat Cambridge 29-17 at Moulton.

University Champs, Deadline Approaching

DON’T forget! Entries for the British Universities Handball Championship next month have to be in by February 1.

The event, at Nottingham University, is over the weekend of February 19-20 and includes Championship and Trophy events for both men and women.

Entries - and enquiries for further information - should go to admin@britishuniversitieshandball.com

English League Resumes

THE English Handball League springs into life this Sunday after the Festive break, with seven matches on the schedule for Sunday at locations across the country.

In the men’s competition, southern section leaders and reigning National Champions Great Dane take on third-placed Ruislip Eagles at Leyton SCORE Centre on Sunday (12noon), while second-placed Olympia play Cambridge at Moulton in Northampton (2pm start).

In the northern section, second-placed Manchester could take top spot in the league if they beat Deva at Greenbank in Liverpool on Sunday (1pm), with leaders Salford having a blank week.

Meanwhile, the two students sides in the north do battle, with Nottingham University playing host to the University of Manchester. Finally, Liverpool Speke Garston take on Liverpool Wolves in the day’s other match at Greenbank.

In the women’s section, Ruislip and Deva do battle in what promises to be a closely-fought match at Leyton (2pm), while at Moulton, Cambridge play Thames.

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