Handball News Edition 1-14

HANDBALL NEWS England edition 1, September 18 2007

GET READY FOR A REVOLUTION! British Handball appeals to UK media for help in promoting fast-growing sport WELCOME to the first edition of Handball News!

As part of their plan to raise the profile of the exciting sport of handball, the British Handball Association will be sending out this weekly newsletter to media outlets across the country.

You are welcome to use all or part of the Handball News for free, and if you require any more details or contact with your local club, please get in touch and we will do our best to help.

Fun, fast and entertaining, handball is one of the fastest growing sports in Great Britain, with more and more people discovering the benefits of playing and watching a sport which is massively popular across the world.

Handball has been an Olympic sport since 1936, and in LAST season’s Division Two runners-up, Speke Garston had a some countries is more popular than football with top tough debut in the top flight, losing 33-17 to Manchester as the 2007-08 season started at Belle Vue, Manchester. players earning salaries to rival professional footballers.

But the Liverpool outfit made a good start, In Britain it remains a minority sport, but new teams are opening up a two goal lead before their springing up each season and some are now competing in rivals hit back to lead 14-10 at the break.

Europe against the giants of the game.

Mid-way through the second half they led

The Action Starts Here!

by four goals, but missed several chances and let Manchester in to kill off the game with a late flurry.

While Speke have a day off on Sunday, last season’s runners-up Manchester tackle Wirral at the Greenbank Academy, Liverpool, while North champions Manchester Univ take on Haslingden, promoted from Div 2 as champions.

The Southern section begins this Sunday, and Oxford University begin their defence of the league title with a match against Ruislip Eagles. Other fixtures at Leyton, London, include Olympia versus Great Dane, while Nottingham University - after transferring from the Northern section - begin their season with a match against Cambridge.

Voted best sport At the Sydney Olympics in 2000 handball was voted as Best Sport, and looks set to be another popular attraction in Beijing next year.

Handball is played over two periods of 30 minutes on a court 40 x 20 metres with a goal at either end.

The ball is slightly smaller than a football to enable it to be held.

A player may only hold the ball for three seconds before passing or bouncing the ball, and may only take three steps with the ball in hand.

RESULTS - September 16 Haslingden Speke

27-39 17-33

Liverpool Manchester

Wirral

35-40

Bolton

FIXTURES - September 23 Men - North (Greenbank, Liverpool): Liverpool v Bolton, Manchester Univ v Haslingden, Manchester v Wirral.

Men - South (Leyton, London): Nottingham Univ v Cambridge, Olympia v Great Dane, Ruislip v Oxford Univ.

Top class handball in Britain INTERNATIONAL handball came to Britain last month when Hungarian champions Veszprem took on Danish outfit Viborg in an exhibition match at Crystal Palace in London.

More than 600 spectators packed the arena, and were treated to a double header which also saw the England men’s team take on a UK AllStars side.

The game was part of England’s preparation for the forthcoming Challenge Cup, and they held their opponents well throughout the first half, only trailing 16-13 at the break.

But some slack defending from England let the All-Stars in for a thrilling 37-28 victory.

Top scorer for England was McLachlan with six goals, while for the All-Stars Dusan Janik and David Sedlacek scored six each.

Veszprem ran out 31-26 winners in the feature match, although Viborg made a superb start and led by four goals early in the game.

Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports on behalf of the British Handball Association. For more details contact 0845 230 0804

HANDBALL NEWS English edition 2, September 25 2007

DEFENCE THE KEY FOR IMPRESSIVE CHAMPS Manchester University make great start to season LAST season’s champions Manchester University began their defence of the title with a 28-16 win over Division One newcomers Haslingden at the Greenbank Academy in Liverpool on Sunday.

Unbeaten all last season, they faced a youthful Haslingden side who looked impressive with a fast and slick passing game.

But with all six of their outfield players defending Manchester University conceded few goals, with goalkeeper Stuart Hawkins in good form.

At the break the champions looked in control at 15-5, but they faced a strong fight-back from their Rossendale rivals, who defended with more aggression and forced Manchester to rely on individual attacking plays to maintain their lead.

But there was to be no big comeback for an impressivelooking Haslingden, whose first victory should be just around the corner.

Rivalries renewed LEVEL on points at the end of last season, the rivalry between Bolton and Liverpool continued on Sunday when the pair battled out a thrilling 36-36 draw.

Liverpool made a strong start to their latest meeting, some strong defence helping to give them a 20-17 lead at half time.

But Bolton hit back quickly after play resumed, closing the gap to just one goal before a couple of penalties gave the Merseyside outfit a two-goal lead. Four goals in quick succession from Bolton saw the lead change hands, only for a goal from the wing and a penalty to level the game once again.

Bolton were given a free throw in the final seconds, but the chance went begging and the spoils were shared.

RESULTS - September 23 North Liverpool Manchester Manchester U

36 - 36 32 - 20 28 - 16

Bolton Wirral Haslingden

Meanwhile, ten goals in the final 15 minutes was not enough to stop Wirral losing out 32-20 to last season’s Northern Division runnersup Manchester.

Wirral battled hard to break down a strong Manchester defence, but with goalkeeper Zsolt Deak in top form they found themselves behind at the break, with their rivals using fast breaks to build up a good lead.

Some good attacking moves from both sides ensured an entertaining match, and despite Wirral’s late surge they could not stop Manchester, whose top scorer was Minas Georgio with 10 goals, while Wirral’s Mark Evans scored six.

Great Dane beat Olympia

SIX goals each from Dusan Janik and Marian Adamec formed the backbone of Great Dane’s 25-18 victory over Olympia on the opening day of the Southern Olympia 18 - 25 Great Dane league at Leyton, London.

The rival London sides battled hard throughout, and with the score at 11-11 at the break there Sept 28: St Patrick's Coll (Ireland) v Oxford Univ (Eng), was little to choose between the Manchester Univ (Eng) v RK Metaloplastika (Serbia), Time two with Great Dane missing Burevestnik (Ukraine) v Great Dane (Eng). several regular first team players.

South

FIXTURES - Euro Challenge Cup

However, while Olympia’s Sept 29: Oxford Univ (Eng) v Ankara II Ozel Idare (Turkey), TJ Start Nove Zamky (Serbia) v Manchester Univ (Eng), Gt Christian Chistianen top-scored with eight goals, he could not stop Great Dane (Eng) v AC AOK Thessaloniki (Greece).

Dane pulling away to victory after

Sept 30: Arkatron Minsk (Belarus) v Oxford Univ (Eng), they exploited their power plays and HRK Izvidac Ljubuski (Bosnia) v Manchester Univ (Eng), their coach made some good tactical changes.

Kolubara Lazarevac (Serbia) v Great Dane (Eng).

Liverpool's Octavio Cuevas, pictured in action against Haslingden during their 39-27 opening week win.

Euro Challenge Cup TOP English sides travel to Europe this week to take part in the second round of the European Challenge Cup. Oxford University, Great Dane and Manchester University will have to beat some of the best European sides if they are to progress to the third round stage.

For full details see the fixtures, left, and check out next week’s issue of Handball News to see how they fared.

Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports on behalf of the British Handball Association. For more details contact 0845 230 0804

HANDBALL NEWS English edition 3, October 2 2007

ENGLISH TEAMS BEATEN IN EUROPEAN CHALLENGE CUP Steep learning curve for English clubs abroad

Handball club nominated for top BBC awards

LEADING 12-11 at half time, Oxford University suffered a dramatic one-point defeat at the hands of St Patrick’s College in the European Challenge Cup group stages at Minsk in Belarus last weekend.

The first of three matches in group A, the game against the Irish side was perhaps Oxford University’s best chance of grabbing a win in the competition, but they lost out 25-24 after a tight second half.

The following day Oxford lost out 14-34 to Turkish outfit Ankara II Ozel Idare, and then on Sunday were beaten 39-19 by home side Arkatron Minsk.

Other English teams in action in the Challenge Cup included Manchester

University, but they were also beaten in all their Group B games - 34-17 to both Serbian teams RK Metaloplastica and TJ St Nove Zamky, while Bosnian club HRK Izvida Ljubuski won 31-13.

Great Dane battled well throughout their Group C matches but were also beaten, losing 35-28 to Liverpool's Shaun Feery feels the heat Ukranian side Time during their thrilling 36-36 draw with Burevestnik on Friday, 21-32 Bolton last week. Pic: Shaun Criscuolo. to Greek hosts AOK Thessaloniki on Saturday and finally 34-25 to Serbian Kolubara Lazarevac, despite a superb second half which they only narrowly lost 16-14.

A FULL programme of league matches takes place this Sunday, with city rivals Liverpool and Speke Garston doing battle in North Division One at the Bellevue 25-24 Oxford Univ (Eng) Sports Centre in Manchester.

17-34 RK Metaloplastika (Srb) Having drawn with Bolton last week, 35-28 Great Dane (Eng) Liverpool will be aiming to recreate the form they showed during the opening week win over Haslingden, while Speke 14-34 Ankara II Ozel Idare (Trk) are still looking for that elusive first win after losing to Manchester in week one.

34-17 Manchester Univ (Eng) In the South section last season’s 21-32 AOK Thessaloniki (Gre) champions Oxford University take on Olympia at Leyton, London, while strugglers Southampton University face a tough test against Great Dane.

Merseyside rivals prepare for battle

RESULTS - European Challenge Cup Friday, September 28 St Patricks Coll (Ire) Manchester Univ (Eng) Time Burevestnik (Ukr)

Saturday, September 29 Oxford Univ (Eng) TJ St Nove Zamky (Srb) Great Dane (Eng)

Sunday, September 30

Arkatron Minsk (Bel) 39-19 Oxford Univ (Eng) HRK Izvida Ljubuski (Bos) 31-13 Manchester Univ (Eng) Kolubara Lazarevac (Srb) 34-25 Great Dane (Eng)

FIXTURES - National Handball League North (Belle Vue, Manchester): Bolton v Manchester, Speke v Liverpool, Wirral v Manchester University.

South (Leyton, London): Cambridge v Ruislip Eagles, Great Dane v Southampton Univ, Oxford Univ v Olympia.

DEVA Handball Club in Chester has been nominated for several top awards at the prestigious Cheshire and Warrington County Sports Partnership Awards Dinner.

The club was only formed in 2003 through an Awards for All grant, and last year was nominated for a BBC Community Sports Club award.

And this year the club has been short-listed in the Junior Sports Club category, while head coach Jon Kelly has been short listed for the top award of Coach of the Year.

Fantastic

“I’m delighted for the club and the sport,” said Kelly. “Last year was incredible to be nominated for the Community Club, but to be nominated again for two of the top awards is fantastic.

“To be short-listed with clubs from some of the major sports raises the profile not only of our club but also handball across the whole of the county.

Commitment

“It’s great to see that some of the achievements and dedication of the young people are being recognised by Sports Development Officers and Partnership Managers, not only for what they have achieved on the court but also their commitment to the sport, through fundraising for their club and coaching of other children in their own time.”

The Awards night is being held on Friday 19th October at Cranage Hall in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire.

Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports on behalf of the British Handball Association. For more details contact 0845 230 0804

HANDBALL NEWS English edition 4, October 9 2007

OXFORD START TITLE DEFENCE WITH VICTORY OVER OLYMPIA SOUTH region champions Oxford University began their defence of the title with a 30-24 victory over Olympia at Leyton on Sunday, but only after a physical encounter between the two rival teams.

Both sides brought 14man squads for a clash which pitted the size and strength of Olympia against the speed and agility of Oxford.

It was Oxford who had the best of the opening exchanges, pulling away into an early 8-3 lead after exploiting poor marking in the left side of the Olympia defence.

But a series of substitutions left them unbalanced and allowed Olympia back to just 8-7 down with a series of breakaway attacks.

The two sides remained evenly matched until the

Liverpool too strong for rivals Speke Garston

break, with Olympia edging ahead 13-12 despite having goalkeeper Beres disqualified for dissent.

Oxford regrouped in the second half and edged ahead, and althoughOlympia fought back from 21-18 to 2120 with 12 minutes remaining, this was to be the closest they came as Oxford pulled away to victory.

A penalty miss at 26-22 down with four minutes remaining effectively sealed Olympia's fate, and even with Santos disqualified for a high tackle Oxford were not about to let victory slip from Bolton's their grasp and they held on against to win 30-24.

RESULTS - Sunday, October 6

North Bolton 26-34 Manchester Speke 9-28 Liverpool Wirral 12-26 Manchester Univ

South Cambridge 33-25 Ruislip Eagles Oxford Univ 30-24 Olympia

FIXTURES - Saturday, October 13 Women's Lge South (Leyton, London) - Ruislip Eagles v Squirrels.

FIXTURES - Sunday, October 14 Men's Lge North (Turf Moor, Burnley) - Manchester v Liverpool, Manchester Univ v Bolton, Speke v Haslingden.

Men's Lge South (Leyton, London) - Great Dane v Ruislip, Oxford Univ v Cambridge.

Women's Lge North (Greenbank, Liverpool) Liverpool v Wirral, Tryst v Bolton.

LIVERPOOL inflicted a 28-9 defeat on Merseyside rivals Liverpool Speke Garston, but the match was closer than the scoreline suggests with their opponents putting together some good periods of play.

It was the first Division One game between the two sides for several years, and although the more established team won through in the end they were made to work hard by an improving Liverpool SG outfit.

Liverpool SG launched wave after wave of purposeful attacks, but Kristian Marsh in action found it difficult to penetrate a well Manchester on Sunday. organised Liverpool defence, which was backed up by some athletic shotPic: Shaun Criscuolo. stopping by goalkeeper Stuart Clark.

Some clinical shooting - by Sean Feary in particular - helped Liverpool to a 19-8 half time lead, and they continued to raise their game after SEVEN goals from and Cambridge came play resumed.

New boy Kraus helps Cambridge seal win

debutant Helmut Kraus helped Cambridge seal a 33-25 victory over Ruislip Eagles on Sunday.

Kraus was named man of the match for his contribution, but it took a real team effort from Cambridge to overcome the challenge of a determined Ruislip outfit, who were only 16-13 behind at the break.

After a good opening period gave Cambridge a two goal lead their handling and shot selection let them down and Ruislip battled back well to lead 7-6.

But a time-out let them regain their composure,

back strongly. With five of the first seven goals to his name, Kraus added further to his tally as Cambridge scored nine unanswered goals.

Ruislip’s frustration continued as, with Rui Pires looking solid in the Cambridge net, they lost captain David Sedlacek with a bloody nose and the score reached 15-7. When Sedlacek returned they clawed back to 16-13 at the break, but Cambridge netted four times shortly after the restart, and from then on their lead was never less than six goals.

The scoreboard ticked over with goal after goal from Liverpool, and although Liverpool SG continued to create chances they failed to convert enough of them and could not catch their rivals.

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Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports on behalf of the British Handball Association. For more details contact 0845 230 0804

HANDBALL NEWS REVENGE IS SWEET FOR EAGLES English edition 5, October 16 2007

Squirrels Suffer at Hands of Rampant Ruislip BEATEN by their rivals twice last season, champions Ruislip Eagles gained revenge when they won 31-20 against Squirrels in their opening game of the Women’s League southern section at Leyton on Sunday.

Nothing but goal difference separated the Eagles from London-based Squirrels and Great Dane at the end of last season, but Ruislip were determined to raze the memory of the only two defeats they suffered in the league last term.

Both teams featured some new players on Sunday, with Ruislip including Fairbrother, Sposi and Hadjipanzova who all missed last season through either injuries or maternity leave.

But it was Squirrels who made the better start with Siri, Bekker and Lopas Do Veiga finding a way past Ruislip’s goalkeeper Dreksler, and they quickly moved into a four-goal lead as Ruislip struggled to find their flow.

But as the half progressed the Eagles battled back with Sposi dominating the middle of the court and converting all her team’s penalties, and by half time Ruislip had established a 15-13 lead.

With everything still to play

for the second half turned physical and both teams picked up injuries. Squirrels targetted Ruislip's Kocisova for heavy marking, but this left the way clear for the other players to stretch the Eagles’ lead and some superb count-attacking from British star Emma Solomon, who scored six second half goals, helped Ruislip build on their lead.

Lopas Do Veiga did her best to keep Squirrels in contention with eight goals, but Ruislip kept a firm grip on the game.

Twelve goals from Daniela Sposi ensured she was voted player of the match, while other scorers for the Eagles included Solomon with seven, Kocisova and Hadjipanzova with four each.

Haslingden Champs Manchester University given fright by edge battle of the new boys battling Bolton LAST season’s champions Manchester University ran out 30-23 winners from their clash with Bolton on Sunday, but only after fending off some determined attacks from the underdogs.

After gaining an early four goal lead, Manchester University were put under

pressure by Bolton, who clawed their way back with some superb defence and counter-attacks which kept the scores level throughout much of the opening period.

The scored remained close until the final 10 minutes, when a series of fast breaks allowed the university to pull away and maintain their unbeaten start to the league.

Let's get together!

STAR players from the glory days of Brentwood Handball Club returned to the town earlier this month for a re-union of the heroes from the 1970s and 1980s.

The former national many of whom had champions, who are all travelled from overseas.

The re-union was now retired, showed planned

by John Compton, they still have a few 59, a former Brentwood moves when they player and ex international returned to the courts at player. the Brentwood Centre,

DIVISION One rookies Liverpool Speke Garston gave fellow rookies Haslingden a tough battle in their Division One North clash on Sunday, but the Lancastrian outfit won 2320 after a dramatic game.

After Haslingden had opened up an early four-nil lead, Liverpool SG found the net, and stayed in touch with their rivals, edging ahead just before the whistle before one more goal from Haslingden made it 12-12 at the break.

As each team scored the other counter-attacked, and it was only a couple of fast breaks in the final 15 minutes that saw Haslingden to victory.

FIXTURES Sunday, October 21 Men's Lge South (Leyton, Nottingham London) University v Great Dane, Olympia v Cambridge, Southampton University v Oxford University.

Liverpool's Vicky Madden prepares to shoot during their clash with rivals Wirral on Sunday.

Pic: Shaun Criscuolo.

RESULTS AND TABLES, Oct 13-14 Women's League South Ruislip Eagles 31 - 20 Squirrels Men's League North Liverpool SG 20 - 23 Haslingden Manchester 24 - 22 Liverpool Manchester Univ 30 - 23 Bolton Men's League South Great Dane 33 - 16 Ruislip Eagles Oxford Univ 23 - 31 Cambridge Women's League North Liverpool 22 - 8 Wirral Tryst 28 - 19 Bolton Men's National League Division One (North) TEAM P W L D F A Diff Manchester 4 4 0 0 123 85 38 Manchester U 3 3 0 0 84 51 33 Liverpool 4 2 1 1 125 96 29 Bolton 4 1 2 1 125 135 -10 Haslingden 3 1 2 0 66 87 -21 Wirral 3 0 3 0 67 98 -31 Liverpool SG 3 0 3 0 46 84 -38

Pt 8 6 5 3 2 0 0

Men's National League Division One (South) TEAM P W L D F A Diff Great Dane 2 2 0 0 58 34 24 Cambridge 2 2 0 0 64 48 16 Oxford Univ 2 1 1 0 53 55 -2 Olympia 2 0 2 0 42 55 -13 Ruislip Eagles 2 0 2 0 41 66 -25 Nottingham U 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Southampton 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Pt 4 4 2 0 0 0 0

Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports on behalf of the British Handball Association. For more details contact 0845 230 0804

HANDBALL NEWS English edition 6, October 23 2007

ENGLAND READY FOR EURO BATTLE

THE cream of English handball head to Luxembourg this week to compete in the European Challenge Trophy against other emerging nations from across the globe.

England will play in Group L alongside Scotland and Ireland, and face some tough clashes with teams such as the Faroe Islands and Luxembourg, who have both played international handball at a higher level, while Malta complete the lineup.

While the Faroe

Islands and Luxembourg will be tough games, England’s coaches are taking nothing for granted.

Just like England, the Scottish team are bolstered by their GB players who are based at the World Class Handball Programme at Aarhus in Denmark, while Malta have put in a great deal of careful preparation, and Ireland coach Thomas

Brannigan is rumoured to have had his squad training five times a week.

The England team will come together from across the globe, with just seven of the 17-man squad being based in England. Six are based in Denmark, while keeper Jesper Parker is travelling from Oklahoma City, Jaime Eklund from Spain and Craig Smith from Germany.

The team is a good mix of youth and experience.

Olympia off the mark after tough match OLYMPIA scored their first league points of the season when they beat Cambridge 34-26 after a tough encounter at Leyton on Sunday.

Cambridge were shorthanded because of injuries, but still led 16-14 at the break.

However, as the second period progressed Olympia pressure started to tell and they pulled ahead 28-21 with some good play through the centre and held out for the win.

Great Dane’s experience showed as they out-played Nottingham University 30-10.

Dusan Janik scored six times for Great Dane, but Marian Adamek’s all-round game won him the man of the match award.

DOMESTIC RESULTS October 21 Men's League South (Leyton, London): Nottingham Univ 10 Great Dane 30, Olympia 34 Cambridge 26, Southampton Univ 16 Oxford Univ 24.

And Oxford ran out 24-16 winners over Southampton, who had a much-reduced team. With a man sent off, goalkeeper Veit Huhnerback kept them in the game and earned the man of the match award.

The England team for Luxembourg: Phil Church, Mark Dowling, Stuart Clark, Michael Hegarty, Mark Evans, Paul Popovic, Aden Woodall, Chris McDermott, Huw Goodwin, Scott Harrington, Sebastion Prieto, Merlin Braithewaite, Ciaran Williams, Will McLachlan, Jesper Parker, Craig Smith, Jaime Eklund.

youth and experience.

Stalwarts of the national side such as Phil Church and Mark Dowling from Liverpool will line-up alongside Aden Woodall and Chris McDermott, 17 and 18 respectively, who have made many England appearances at junior level.

And Talent ID recruit Huw Goodwin, although the least experienced of the team, will be aiming to show some of the skills which helped secure

him a place on the World Class Programme in Aarhus.

Add in the influence of Will McLachlan, Parker, Smith, Merlin Braithewaite, Sebastien Prieto and Jaime Eklund, and you have influences of Austria, Sweden, Germany, Monaco and Spain, respectively.

Coupled with assistant coach Wojtek Hanyz’s Polish nationality, this must rank as one of the world’s most cosmopolitan sporting teams.

EUROPEAN CHALLENGE TROPHY, fixtures Wed, Oct 24: Faroe Islands v Malta, Luxembourg v Ireland, Scotland v England.

Thurs, Oct 25: England v Luxembourg, Ireland v Faroe Islands, Malta v Scotland.

Fri, Oct 26: Faroe Islands v Scotland, Ireland v England, Luxembourg v Malta.

Sat, Oct 27: Faroe Islands v England, Malta v Ireland, Scotland v Luxembourg.

Sun, Oct 28: England v Malta, Luxembourg v Faroe Islands, Scotland v Ireland.

DOMESTIC FIXTURES Men's National League Division One (South) October 27-28 TEAM P W L D F A Diff Great Dane 3 3 0 0 88 44 44 Oct 27- Women's Lge Sth: Cambridge 3 2 1 0 90 82 8 Gt Dane v Southampton.

Oxford Univ 3 2 1 0 77 71 6 Oct 28- Men's Lge Sth: Cambridge v Great Dane, Olympia 3 1 2 0 76 81 -5 Nottingham Univ v Southampton U 1 0 1 0 16 24 -8 Olympia, Ruislip Eagles v Nottingham U 1 0 1 0 10 30 -20 Southampton Univ.

Ruislip Eagles 2 0 2 0 41 66 -25

Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports on behalf of the British Handball Association. For more details contact 0845 230 0804

Pt 6 4 4 2 0 0 0

HANDBALL NEWS English edition 7, October 30 2007

INSPIRATIONAL ENGLAND! WITH three victories from their five games, England put on a superb show at the European Challenge Trophy in Luxembourg last week.

Victories over Scotland, Ireland and Malta helped ensure they finished third in their group of six, with just the host nation and the Faroe Islands proving too strong for a rapidlyimproving England side.

fighting for the second half, with Stuart McLaughlan in inspired form, and they closed the gap to seven goals.

But England steadied the ship and gaps began to open in the Scottish defence leading to England pulling away to victory.

The following day England faced a very different proposition, and despite putting together some good play they still ended up losing 41-13 against a strong Luxembourg outfit.

Goal Spree

They started their Preparations took a knock matches with a clash against Scotland, and ran when Will McLachlan turned out 31-20 winners after a an ankle in training, and after just four minutes of the game testing opening game.

couple of goals, and after half time they continued to push England hard.

The Faroe Islands were next up for England, who were keen to put in a better performance than they showed against Luxembourg.

But they managed just two goals in the first half hour as the Faroes extended a 19-2 lead at the break.

The second half was a much closer affair with the Faroes unable to stop England scoring as they had before the break, but they still edged the last 30 minutes 1615 and won the match 35-17.

England’s final game of the competition was against Malta, and the two sides were evenly matched in a thrilling contest. Just four goals separated the two teams at half time with England edging ahead 12-8, but by the final whistle it was even closer, England again on top by just 22-19 after a hard match.

Following their unbeaten performance, group winners Luxembourg go forward to play the winner of the other group, Georgia, in the final of the European Challenge Trophy in Norway.

The game started however with a series of technical errors on the part of the England team, but even with these problems England were irrepressible.

Opening a two goal lead whilst a player down, England seemed to be cruising at 7-1, and despite the Scots playing a physical game England had opened an 18-7 lead by the break.

But the Scots came out

had to withdraw.

But 24 hours later England had picked themselves up and were ready to take on Ireland in a match they eventually won 24-17.

Despite still being without McLachlan they had high hopes of bossing the game, and with the scoreboard showingt 10-4 shortly before the break things appeared to be going well.

But the Irish pulled back a

DREAMS of success at the 2012 Olympics in London received a boost last week when the British Handball Association appointed Chris Spice to lead their Performance Management Group.

Spice will chair the group with immediate effect, and hopes are high that he will have much the same impact in handball that he has brought to several other sports.

He will combine the role our commitment to ensuring with his on-going work with as British Handball achieves a Director of Performance at commendable result at the British Basketball, where he 2012 Games.” has helped the side gain Spice will work alongside promotion to the European A the BHA’s Danish Technical Division for 2008.

Advisor Allan Lund, and head Spice worked with the coaches Morten Arvidsson England rugby team in the run- and Carsten Albrektsen in up to their 2003 World Cup delivering a successful win, and is currently working programme. with the University of Virginia hockey team.

BHA chairman Stevie Neilson said: “Chris has a proven track record of success in performance management at the very highest level, and his technical background will bring a greater focus on performance.

“He is highly ambitious and The BHA's new performance determined, and totally shares guru Chris Spice.

Performance Guru Signs Up

Lucky for some: Merlin Braithewaite, left, top scored for England with 26 goals, while Will McLachlan missed out through injury.

European Challenge Trophy, Luxembourg TEAM P W L D F A Diff Pt Luxembourg 5 5 0 0 199 95 104 10 Faroe Islands 5 4 1 0 201 106 95 8 England 5 3 2 0 107 132 -25 6 Ireland 5 1 3 1 112 168 -56 3 Scotland 5 1 4 0 107 173 -66 2 Malta 5 0 4 1 93 145 -52 1 Results, Oct 24: Faroe Islands 37 Malta 18, Luxembourg 50 Ireland 22, Scotland 20 England 31.

Results, Oct 25: England 13 Luxembourg 41, Ireland 21 Faroe Islands 46, Malta 20 Scotland 21.

Results, Oct 26: Faroe Islands 58 Scotland 19, Ireland 17 England 24, Luxembourg 40 Malta 11.

Results, Oct 27: Faroe Islands 35 England 17, Malta 25 Ireland 25, Scotland 24 Luxembourg 37.

Results, Oct 28: England 22 Malta 19, Luxembourg 31 Faroe Islands 25, Scotland 23 Ireland 27.

Men's League Division One (South): Ruislip 32 Southampton Univ 26.

FIXTURES, November 4 Men's Lge North (Bellevue, Manchester): Bolton v Liverpool SG, Manchester v Manchester Univ, Wirral v Haslingden.

Men's Lge South (Leyton): Nottingham Univ v Oxford Univ, Olympia v Ruislip, Southampton Univ v Cambridge.

Women's Lge North (Turf Moor, Burnley): Bolton v Wirral, Haslingden v Liverpool, Tryst v Manchester.

Women's Lge South (Nottingham): Great Dane v Nottingham, Oxford v Ruislip, Southampton Univ v Squirrels.

Men's National League Division One (South) TEAM P W L D F A Diff Pt Great Dane 3 3 0 0 88 44 44 6 Cambridge 3 2 1 0 90 82 8 4 Oxford Univ 3 2 1 0 77 71 6 4 Olympia 3 1 2 0 76 81 -5 2 Ruislip Eagles 3 1 2 0 73 92 -19 2 Southampton U 2 0 2 0 42 56 -14 0 Nottingham U 1 0 1 0 10 30 -20 0

He has extensive experience of enhancing sports performance having worked with England rugby, the Great Britain and England hockey teams, the Australian women’s hockey team as well as British basketball.

Handball News is produced behalf of the British Handball Association. For more details contact 0845 230 0804 or see www.englandhandball.com

HANDBALL NEWS English edition 8, November 6 2007

OLYMPIC HOPEFULS ON SHOW Talent ID players show their mettle in trial game

SOME of the best young handball talent Britain has to offer was on show last weekend, with the Talent ID development program players taking on a Division One North select team at Bellevue, Manchester.

The Talent ID programme was set up to find potential medallists at the 2012 London Olympics, and their quality was evident throughout the match against a Division One side largely made up of Manchesterbased players.

Although Talent ID players lost out 37-28 at the end of the match, they led 12-11 with 20 minutes gone, and gave their rivals a tough time.

Bill Baillie, Talent ID coach, said: “Overall, this was a good test for the team. For many of the Talent ID squad this was the first exposure to competitive handball and it proved a stern test to their progress. I am delighted at the result and the manner in which the individuals played.”

Players of note for the Talent ID team included goalkeeper Bob White, outfield player Stephen Hill, and top scorers Chris Mohr and Aden Woodall.

Earlier this year 280 hopefuls were short-listed and put through their paces with a series of tests. After being whittled down, 19 females and 24 males were asked to attend week-long camps in Denmark and Germany, following which a small group progressed to an eight-week apprenticeship which aims to give them a full understanding of just what it takes to become an Olympic athlete.

Manchester derby THE new-look Manchester University side climbed to the top of the table after beating city rivals Manchester 28-20 in a dramatic clash at Bellevue.

Manchester kicked off the scoring in the first minute, but this lead was quickly countered by three University goals prompting the Manchester HC team into an early time-out.

After a cautious period of play from both sides, University stepped up a gear pulling away to a 9-4 lead.

Manchester hit back, but could not take the lead and still trailed 14-9 at the break.

At half-time the University coaching staff was upbeat about the performance but also warned of the need to start the second half as strong

as possible to stop Manchester getting back into the match. And rarely was a coach's advice translated into reality so accurately.

Powerful and quick play through the backs created chances for the wing players Alan Hough, Peter Kacir and Inigo Eugui as well as line player Thomas Pedersen who converted their chances, and the strong defensive effort was ably supported by Stuart Hawkins in goal.

With 10 minutes left the University had put themselves 10 goals ahead and the result was effectively decided.

Manchester reduced the gap to eight goals with a final push, but the day belonged to the University team who have won all four of their opening matches and look set to remain the team to beat.

Great Dane make winning start

GREAT Dane got their defence of the Women’s Division One title off to a flying start, overcoming Nottingham University 30-12.

High Flyer: Liverpool's Kelvin Malone in action against city rivals Speke Garston. Pic: Shaun Criscuolo.

Olympia battle back TRAILING 11-15 at half time, Olympia battled back to beat Ruislip Eagles 30-25 in the Men’s Southern section on Sunday.

As in their previous match against Cambridge, Olympia started slowly but made amends later in the match. Ruislip started strongly and were well organised, but relentless second half pressure from Olympia saw them overturn that deficit with some fast attacking down the wing.

Notable players for Olympia included Sofiane Makluaf and Zilvinas Juodis who scored seven and six goals respectively while for Ruislip, Karl Chan scored five times, while Nicolas Seller and Csaba Kemecsei netted four each.

With Southampton travelling with just eight players and Cambridge

with 10, there was some unusual tactics on show in this clash which Cambridge won 40-23.

Cambridge took a healthy 7-0 lead against a Southampton team who struggled to find understanding between their new players.

Southampton hit back with three goals, but Cambridge were dominant throughout, and even when they were left with only four outfield players, Southampton failed to get the better of their rivals.

After the break another unanswered sixgoal burst took Cambridge to 24:8 at the 40-minute mark, and the match was effectively over.

Nottingham started brightly, but Great Dane quickly got into their stride with Iris Manu dominating the back court and goalkeeper Carlota Berruzo launching effective fast breaks, and by half time they already led 13-5.

Iris Manu finished the game with 10 goals for Great Dane, while for Nottingham Neubut scored five and Weseman four. * Ruislip Eagles continued their good start to the season with a convincing 3116 win over Oxford University.

With only seven players available, Ruislip planned to go all out to win the game in the first half, and their plan came off. They made a fast start and attacked immediately, and although Oxford battled well to stay in contention they were 17-6 behind at the break.

Oxford pushed on in the second half and, as Ruislip began to tire they narrowed the deficit with Sonia Szamucki scoring four second half goals.

RESULTS, November 4 Men's Lge North (Bellevue): Bolton 37 Liverpool SG 19, Manchester 20 Manchester U 28.

Men's Lge South (Leyton, London): Olympia 30 Ruislip 25, Southampton U 23 Cambridge 40.

Women's Lge North (Turf Moor): Haslingden 18 Liverpool 13.

Women's Lge South (Nottingham): Great Dane 30 Nottingham 12, Oxford 16 Ruislip Eagles 31.

FIXTURES, November 11 Men's Lge North (Turf Moor, Burnley): Bolton v Haslingden, Liverpool v Manchester Univ.

Men's Lge South (Leyton): Great Dane v Southampton U, Nottingham U v Cambridge, Ruislip v Oxford U.

Women's League North (Tryst, League tables will appear in next week's Scotland): Tryst v Liverpool.

Handball News

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HANDBALL NEWS English edition 9, November 13 2007

INJURY-HIT CAMBRIDGE BATTLE TO VICTORY WITH injury and illness taking their toll, Cambridge fielded the bare minimum seven players for their clash with Nottingham in the Men’s Division One (South), but still emerged with a 3321 victory from the match at Leyton, London, on Sunday.

Cambridge’s squad was already under pressure with injuries, but they were further depleted with flu and dental operations leaving them with no subs for the match.

After falling behind

5-2 after 10 minutes, University.

Cambridge gradually With just ten got to grips with the players available Nottingham offence, Great Dane still and after levelling at 6- hoped for a 6 and then 9-9, they comfortable win scored five against a side yet to unanswered goals to win this season, but help them to a 17-12 Southampton’s lead at the break. squad was their Nottingham counter- strongest so far this attacked well, but Rui term.

Pires in the In an error-strewn Cambridge goal read game Great Dane their shooting well and couldn’t take Cambridge’s margin advantage of some stretched to 11 goals, fast breaks, and were eventually ending at only leading 11-7 at 33-21. the mid-way point.

Great Dane That pattern notched up their fourth continued in the victory to stay top of second half with the the table, but were powerful Vladimir made to work for their Frank continuing to narrow 19-17 victory keep Southampton in over Southampton the game. Great Dane began to lose confidence in their rehearsed plays as their rivals battled on, but Southampton could never quite

Men's League South (Leyton, London): Great Dane 19 Southampton Univ 17, Nottingham Univ 21 Cambridge 33, bridge the gap, not Ruislip Eagles 27 Oxford Univ 27.

helped by several two- Men's League North (Turf Moor, Burnley): Bolton 39 minute penalties.

Haslingden 34, Liverpool 14 Manchester Univ 31.

The match between Ruislip and Oxford Women's League North (Tryst, Scotland): Tryst 22 ended in a thrilling 27- Liverpool 21.

27 draw, with both sides’ hopes of a topFIXTURES, November 17-18 three finish suffering because of the result. Sat - Women's League South (Leyton, London): Oxford v Ruislip took the Squirrels, Great Dane v Ruislip Eagles, Southampton Univ v early initiative, first Nottingham. through Trahn and Sun - Men's League South (Leyton): Oxford Univ v Great Dane, then Chan getting the Ruislip v Nottingham Univ, Olympia v Southampton Univ. first of his nine goals.

The teams remained Sun - Men's League North (Greenbank, Liverpool): Liverpool close, but at the break SG v Manchester U, Haslingden v Manchester, Wirral v Liverpool.

Ruislip were narrowly PLEASE NOTE - League tables reflect games ahead 16-14.

The game which have been forfeited remained tight, with Ruislip's captain Men's National League Division One (South) David Sedlacek TEAM P W L D F A Diff Pt making an impact early in the half, only Great Dane 4 4 0 0 107 61 46 8 for Oxford's captain Cambridge 5 4 1 0 163 126 37 8 Karl Karlson to Oxford Univ 5 3 1 1 141 123 18 7 respond with 5 of the Olympia 4 2 2 0 106 106 0 4 last six Oxford goals as the match ended Ruislip Eagles 5 1 3 1 125 149 -24 3 all square.

Southampton U 4 0 4 0 82 115 -33 0

Goals aplenty as Bolton overcome Haslingden

Liverpool's Terry Malone is closely marked by two Manchester Univ players. Pic: Shaun Criscuolo.

Tryst edge out strong Liverpool

RESULTS, November 11

WITH Bolton’s Andre Kafack and Haslingden’s Stuart Latchford both scoring 14 goals, this National One (North) encounter proved to be an epic encounter, with Bolton edging the result 39-34.

The young guns of Liverpool 31-14 to Haslingden had high score a fifth hopes of scalping the consecutive win. experienced Bolton Fast breaks led to side, and they so the University side nearly did just that. taking an early 5-1 With the scores lead, and they tight at 17-14 to continued their strong Bolton at the break, attacking to lead 13-6 experience began to at half time. tell despite some The second half good attacking began with more fast defensive work from breaks, and with the Haslingden.

University defence League leaders forcing turnovers Manchester Univ which were frequently looked to build on the converted into goals, previous week’s win their lead gradually over city rivals grew despite some Manchester and they good defence by did just that, beating Liverpool.

Nottingham U 3

0

3

0

56

100

-44

0

Men's National League Division One (North) TEAM P W L D F A Manchester U 5 5 0 0 143 85 Manchester 5 4 1 0 143 113 Bolton 6 3 2 1 201 188 Liverpool 5 2 2 1 139 127 Haslingden 5 2 3 0 110 126 Liverpool SG 5 1 4 0 75 121 Wirral 5 0 5 0 67 118

Diff 58 30 13 12 -16 -46 -51

Pt 10 8 7 5 4 2 0

Women's National League Division One (South) TEAM Great Dane Ruislip Squirrels Oxford Nottingham Southampton U

P 2 2 2 1 1 2

W 2 2 1 0 0 0

L D 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 2 0

F 40 62 30 16 12 0

A 12 36 31 31 30 20

Diff 28 26 -1 -15 -18 -20

struggled to beat a strong Louise Fletcher in the Liverpool goal.

And Caroline Dowling Women's National League Division One (North) was on top form, TEAM P W L D F A Diff helping Liverpool to an Tryst 2 2 0 0 50 40 10 18-15 lead at the break.

Liverpool 3 1 2 0 56 48 8 But Tryst changed Haslingden 1 1 0 0 18 13 5 formation and battled Wirral 2 1 1 0 18 22 -4 back to take the win Bolton 2 0 2 0 19 38 -19 by a single goal.

Handball News is produced behalf of the British Handball Association. For more details contact 0845 230 0804 or see www.englandhandball.com

SIX goals each from Amanda Lowe and Cheryl Thompson helped Tryst score a dramatic 22-21 verdict over Liverpool in Division One (North) at Cumbernauld, Scotland.

The match was tight all the way, but Tryst

Pt 4 4 2 0 0 0 Pt 4 2 2 2 0

HANDBALL NEWS English edition 10, November 21 2007

LAST SHOT DRAMA ON MERSEYSIDE Six-goal debutant Jameson helps Wirral score first league win

WIRRAL notched up their first league victory of the season in dramatic fashion on Sunday, beating Merseyside rivals Liverpool 21-20 to climb off the bottom of the National Division One (North) table.

Despite trailing for much of the game against hosts Liverpool at Greenbank, Wirral were never far behind. They are now second bottom, level on points with Liverpool Speke Garston who suffered a 31-9 defeat to league leaders Manchester University.

As the clock ticked down Wirral continued to battle, and a couple of dramatic saves from the evergreen Jon Kelly along with some poor shooting from the home side let Wirral in for the kill, with

the last shot of the game giving them victory.

The match marked the league debut of 16-year-old Stephen Jameson, and he turned in an impressive performance for Wirral, scoring six goals to help his side secure their first victory of the season.

In other Northern action Manchester University won their sixth straight game after beating Liverpool Speke Garston 31-9.

From the throw off it was evident that Manchester were on top and they rattled in five quick goals in the first few minutes, and Speke’s cause

Six shooter: Stephen Jameson.

was not helped when goalkeeper Paul Langton was sent off for kicking the ball.

Despite some keen endeavour in attack, Liverpool SG were unable to penetrate their rival’s defence and although their interplay was impeccable, their ability to translate this into goals was stunted by solid defending and athletic goalkeeping.

Solid in defence and strong in attack, Manchester had too much experience for Liverpool, who did not let their heads go down and battled on.

The final score of 31-9 was a fair reflection of Manchester's dominance, but after just six games in the top flight Liverpool should take many positives despite defeat.

And they will get the chance of a re-match this weekend, when the return fixtures begin.

Elsewhere in the league Manchester held on to second spot after battling to a 20-18 victory over a stubborn Haslingden outfit.

Lighting fault forces replay in top of the table clash THE long-awaited clash between table-topping Great Dane and thirdOxford placed rivals University had to be abandoned on Sunday after technical problems with the lighting at Leyton.

Great Dane were aiming to maintain their unbeaten start to the season, while a win for Oxford would have put them top of the table.

The constantly changing Oxford team were the clear underdogs of the day with inconsistent performances so far this

season. But despite being the favourites, Great Dane found themselves struggling to penetrate the Oxford defence with their various combinations.

With high-percentage goal scoring in attack from an aggressive team effort led by the Oxford trio of Florian, Fabiano and Maciek, the score was even for much of the first half, with Great Dane leading 15-13 at the break.

But just eight minutes into the second period the lights went out as tensions

Action from Great Dane's clash with Oxford. Pic: Hao Zhang.

RESULTS, November 17-18 Women's League South (Leyton): Oxford 20 Squirrels 25, Great Dane 18 Ruislip 20.

Men's League North (Greenbank): Liverpool SG 9 Manchester Univ 31, Haslingden 18 Manchester 20, Wirral 21 Liverpool 20.

Men's League South (Leyton): Oxford Univ v Great Dane aban, Ruislip 32 Nottingham Univ 22, Olympia 29 Southampton Univ 20.

FIXTURES, November 25 Men's League North (Turf Moor, Burnley): Manchester Univ v Liverpool Speke Garston, Liverpool v Wirral.

Men's League South (Leyton): Oxford Univ v Nottingham Univ, Cambridge v Southampton Univ.

Women's League South (Leyton, London): Oxford v Nottingham, Haslingden v Manchester.

Men's National League Division One (South) TEAM P W L D F A Diff Pt were at their highest, and Great Dane 4 4 0 0 107 61 46 8 despite a long break with Cambridge 5 4 1 0 163 126 37 8 unsuccessful attempts to Oxford Univ 5 3 1 1 141 123 18 7 rectify the problem the Olympia 5 3 2 0 135 126 9 6 game had to be Ruislip Eagles 6 2 3 1 157 171 -14 5 abandoned, much to the Southampton U 5 0 5 0 102 144 -42 0 frustration of the teams.

Nottingham U 4 0 4 0 78 132 -54 0 Olympia boosted their league campaign with a 29- Men's National League Division One (North) 20 win over struggling TEAM P W L D F A Diff Pt Southampton University, Manchester U 6 6 0 0 174 94 80 12 while in other southern Manchester 6 5 1 0 163 131 32 10 section action Ruislip Bolton 6 3 2 1 201 188 13 7 Eagles beat bottom of the Liverpool 6 2 3 1 159 148 11 5 Nottingham league Haslingden 6 2 4 0 128 146 -18 4 University to remain just Wirral 6 1 5 0 88 138 -50 2 one point behind Olympia in Liverpool SG 6 1 5 0 84 152 -68 2 fifth.

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HANDBALL NEWS English edition 11, November 27 2007

LIVERPOOL GAIN SWEET REVENGE WITH VICTORY OVER RIVALS WIRRAL AFTER losing out to their city rivals in a thrilling 21-20 defeat just seven days ago, Liverpool gained revenge over Wirral with a convincing 25-16 victory at Turf Moor, Burnley, in a National Division One (North) clash on Sunday.

Last week’s defeat put a big dent in Liverpool’s title aspirations, but they were back to their best in the rematch, using all their experience to good effect and negating Wirral’s youthful skills.

The early exchanges were cagey with both teams only having the bare minimum seven players, and an injury would have proved devastating for either side.

With the match 20 minutes old there was just one goal from each side, perhaps also because of the absence of Liverpool’s

Mark Dowling and Wirral youngster Steven Jameson, who bagged six goals last week.

But while Jameson’s absence was telling there was plenty of other young talent in the Wirral side willing to take the fight to Liverpool, and 16year-old Joel Halstead led by example with five goals.

However, as the game progressed Liverpool’s Phil Church lifted his team well and the goals started to flow, although Wirral could have been further behind but for athletic keeper Jon Kelly.

But Liverpool’s experience began to tell, as well as having learned the lessons of the previous week’s defeat, and the clock ticked down to a comfortable win for Liverpool, who are now third in the table.

Meanwhile, bottom of the Liverpool Speke league Garston put up a superb fight against league leaders and European Cup qualifiers Manchester University before going down 27-14.

Liverpool SG showed vast improvement from the previous week, when they

were outplayed by the same outfit, but as the return league fixtures began it was clear that the newcomers to Division One are learning quickly how to compete with the top sides.

Manchester started as they did the previous week with two goals in the first few attacks, but unlike their previous meeting Liverpool SG responded with some determined attacks of their own and soon drew level.

Resilient defending and inspired goalkeeping meant that goals for Manchester were hard to come by, despite some skilful attacks and wellpractised cross-overs, and at half time Manchester only led 14-7.

The second period started like the first – Manchester goal followed by an equaliser

by Liverpool, but despite some meaningful attacks by Speke they often found it difficult to beat Manchester’s goalkeeper Stuart Hawkins whose athleticism prevented many goals – particularly from John Jacobson. Ultimately this was the difference between the teams.

Liverpool's Terry Malone in action against Manchester University. Pic: Shaun Criscuolo.

RESULTS, November 25 Men's Lge North (Turf Moor): Manchester Univ 27 Liverpool SG 14, Liverpool 25 Wirral 16.

Men's Lge South (Leyton): Oxford Univ 32 Nottingham Univ 17, Cambridge 29 Southampton Univ 24.

Women's Lge North: Haslingden 17 Manchester 23.

FIXTURES, December 2 Women's Lge North (Tryst): Liverpool v Manchester, Tryst v Wirral. South (Leyton): Ruislip v Nottingham, Great Dane v Squirrels.

Men's Lge South (Leyton): Oxford Univ v Great Dane.

Men's National League Division One (North) TEAM P W L D F A Diff Pt Manchester U 7 7 0 0 201 108 93 14 Manchester 6 5 1 0 163 131 32 10 Liverpool 7 3 3 1 184 164 20 7 Bolton 6 3 2 1 201 188 13 7 Haslingden 6 2 4 0 128 146 -18 4 Wirral 7 1 6 0 104 163 -59 2 international included a Commonwealth Liverpool SG 7 1 6 0 98 179 -81 2

Nations Come Together THE international nature of handball was underlined last weekend when representatives of several Commonwealth federations met up in London for talks aimed at giving the sport a much

higher profile.

Delegates from India, England, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Pakistan and Cyprus met up for a series of discussions, and items on the agenda

competition for Men and Women and a youth Men's National League Division One (South) competition for U17s.

TEAM P W L D F A Diff The members also Cambridge 6 5 1 0 192 150 42 discussed how to get the Oxford Univ 6 4 1 1 173 140 33 sport, already recognised by Great Dane 4 4 0 0 107 61 46 the Commonwealth Games Federation, actually onto the Olympia 5 3 2 0 135 126 9 programme of the Ruislip 6 2 3 1 157 171 -14 Commonwealth Games.

Southampton 6 0 6 0 126 173 -47 A primary function of the Nottingham U 5 0 5 0 95 164 -69 CHA and where it could be most effective is by Women's National Lge Division One (North) influencing International P W L D F A Diff handball policy and elections. TEAM There are over 50 Tryst 2 2 0 0 50 40 10 Commonwealth nations Liverpool 3 1 2 0 56 48 8 affiliated to the International Manchester 1 1 0 0 23 17 6 Handball Federation which Haslingden 2 1 1 0 35 36 -1 would make the CHA a Wirral 2 1 1 0 18 22 -4 powerful block.

Handball News is produced on behalf of the British Handball Association. For more details contact 0845 230 0804 or see www.englandhandball.com

Pt 10 9 8 6 5 0 0 Pt 4 2 2 2 2

HANDBALL NEWS English edition 12, December 4 2007, Page One

DOGGED MANCHESTER BATTLE TO WIN Mancunians go top of the table with victory over Liverpool MANCHESTER made it two wins from two games in the Women’s National Division One (North) when they secured a 2217 victory over rivals Liverpool at Tryst, Scotland, on Sunday.

Liverpool hit the ground running and established an early lead, with some great attacking, coupled with good shot stopping from the Liverpool goalkeeper.

But the Manchester team slowly battled back into contention, and their goalkeeper was also pivotal in stemming the

flow of goals for the Merseyside outfit.

Manchester tied the scores at 9-9, but two late goals meant Manchester had the edge at the break.

Goals The second half started with both teams putting enormous efforts into defence and the flow of goals slowed considerably.

Liverpool eventually took a three-goal lead, but Manchester hit back with player of the

RESULTS, December 2 Women's League South: Ruislip 36 Nottingham 15, Great Dane 30 Squirrels 20.

Women's League North: Liverpool 17 Manchester 22.

Men's League South: Oxford Univ 13 Great Dane 23.

FIXTURES, December 9 Men's League North (Sugden or Turf Moor): Haslingden v Manchester Univ, Wirral v Manchester, Bolton v Liverpool.

Men's League South (Leyton): Southampton v Great Dane, Olympia v Oxford Univ, Ruislip v Cambridge.

Women's National Lge Division One (North) TEAM P W L D F A Diff Pt Manchester 2 2 0 0 45 34 11 4 Tryst 2 2 0 0 50 40 10 4 Liverpool 4 1 3 0 73 70 3 2 Haslingden 2 1 1 0 35 36 -1 2 Wirral 2 1 1 0 18 22 -4 2 Bolton 2 0 2 0 19 38 -19 0 Women's National Lge Division One (South) TEAM Ruislip Great Dane Squirrels Oxford Nottingham

P W L D F A Diff Pt 4 4 0 0 116 69 47 8 3 2 1 0 78 52 26 4 3 1 2 0 65 81 -16 2 2 0 2 0 36 56 -20 0 2 0 2 0 27 66 -39 0

back with player of the match Line Wadel finding her shooting range and scoring a string of goals.

Now in control, Manchester consistently added goals while still defending well, and ran out 22-17 winners.

Meanwhile, in the women’s southern section leaders Ruislip and second-placed rivals Great Dane both secured victories, Ruislip cruising to a 3615 victory over bottom of the table Nottingham, while Great Dane maintained their title hopes with a 30-20 win over thirdplaced Squirrels.

No way through: Oxford University look to penetrate the Great Dane defence. Pic: Hao Zhang.

Great Dane make light work of beating Oxford GREAT Dane climbed to the top of the Men’s Division One (South) table with a 23-13 victory over Oxford University at Leyton in the only men’s game of the weekend.

After the previous week’s clash between the two sides was abandoned because of a lighting failure, both sides were keen to get a result, but it was Great Dane who proved to be strongest.

Oxford’s attack mis-fired, while Great Dane’s keeper Radu Miclaus was in good form and helped his side lead 13-3 at the break.

The second half mirrored the first. In attack Jordi Ferrer scored one quarter of his team’s goals whilst the Great Dane defence stopped any Oxford threat with some well organised defending.

Oxford played better in the second period but the deficit was too large to claw back.

You can play your part in the future of our sport PLANS to increase the popularity of handball in England in the run up to the London Olympics in 2012 and beyond took another step this week with the launch of an online survey of interested parties.

The England Handball Association is seeking the views of people from the handball community as well as other educational and sporting bodies.

The survey is just the first part of the England

Handball Association’s plans for mapping out the future of the sport.

After all the responses have been

gathered in and analysed there will be consultation workshops from January where interested parties can discuss the results and help to formulate further plans.

Details of how to participate can be found at britishhandball.com.

Paul Goodwin, general manager of the BHA said: "The response so far has been good, but we need as many people as possible to take part."

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HANDBALL NEWS English edition 12, December 4 2007, Page Two

BRITISH WOMEN ON PARADE AT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS THE Women’s World Championships may be going on without Great Britain, but our national team is out in France nevertheless after being invited to take part in several friendly matches against French sides as well as the Luxembourg national team.

Only the top 24 nations programme of training are contesting the twice a day as the HOST nation France is one of several teams who Championships, but the guests of the St have already reached the main group stages of the club in Women’s World Championships, being staged at Great Britain set-up are Sebastian Nantes, before moving venues across the country from December 2-16. training close by, and as on to Beauvais, Paris for The top 24 nations the next stage in Dijon, well as playing several the clash with across from the globe are while Germany and Korea matches they are getting Luxembourg. split into preliminary will join them after a feel for such major The squad played a groups of four, with the progressing from Group F events by being around friendly against host teams finishing in the top as well as Spain and the competing teams and club St Sebastian on the two of each group going Hungary from Group E. first full day at the camp, watching the matches. forward to fresh group So far Korea have The first stage of the and although they won shots she had to face and stages ahead of the looked strong in attack, training camp has been 27-19 the team were frustrating the partisan knockout phase in the final scoring 76 goals from their aware they should have crowd. based in Nantes, where two games, while Russia won more easily after Squad: Sarah Hargreaves, week.

Germany, Korea, Ukraine starting Any team who has won have displayed strong poorly as Laura Innes, Cerys Walker, and Paraguay are playing players got used to each Kelsi Fairbrother, Chloe Lam- the first two of their group defence, conceding just 29 matches is guaranteed a goals. their first round matches. other.

Moores, Holly Lam-Moores, But while many teams This has allowed the Britt Goodwin led the Emma Dahlin, Louise Jukes, place in the next stage, while teams finishing in the have already secured British team to study way with six goals Sophie Keen, Lesley Robb, bottom two spots will play places in the next round of team tactics and supported by captain Britt Goodwin, Yvette Frings, in the consolation the main competition, the Lynn McCafferty, Daniela technical attributes of Lynn McCafferty with remaining matches are allSposi, Lenka Kocisova. President’s Cup. four, while goalkeeper other nations.

And although none of important with group Sarah Hargreaves had Coach: Morten Arvidsson.

Coach Morton the home nations are winners facing runners-up Asst Coach: Vigdis an excellent game, Arvidsson arranged a full saving 12 out of the 15 Holmeset. taking part, handball fans from other groups in their

Host nation book their place in next stage

Haslingden battle back to draw with Leeds Met TRAILING to Leeds Met with just seconds remaining, Haslingden battled back to salvage a 30-30 draw and hold on to top spot in the Northern Development League (East) after their clash on Sunday.

The result leaves both sides unbeaten, although Haslingden retain top spot by one point from Leeds.

The Lancashire outfit only fielded seven

players, but were confident their fitness would hold out. Leeds edged the first half 1614, and after the teams matched each other goal for goal Haslingden pulled level late in the match.

Elsewhere, Bolton/Salford notched up their first win of the campaign with a 27-23 victory over Sheffield.

With only six players available Sheffield were always facing a tough time, but it was the

South Yorkshire side who led narrowly at half time.

An injury left Sheffield with just five players on the pitch, and Bolton/Salford steadily found the gaps in defence and built a lead which they held until the whistle.

across England are eagerly following the action to see who is likely to be a threat at next year’s Olympics in Beijing.

As well as France, other teams through to the main group stage after winning both their opening games include their Group A rivals Croatia who will join them in Metz for the next stage.

In Group D Romania and Poland are through to

next matches, giving themselves a crucial psychological boost for the rest of the group stages.

For more details on the World Championships, log on to www.ihf.info.

Every match in the tournament is being shown live on the internet, and will be available on demand shortly afterwards. Log on to www.videosport.com for more details.

Proud partners to British Handball

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HANDBALL NEWS English edition 13, December 11 2007, Page One

SUCCESS FOR BRITISH WOMEN

Great Britain squad and scores: Cerys Walker (gk), Sarah Hargreaves (gk), Laura Innes (gk), Yvette Frings ( 8) , Britt Goodwin (7 ) , Chloe Lam-Moores (6), Emma Dahlin (3), Kelsi Fairbrother (3), Holly Lam-Moores (3), Lynn McCafferty (2) , Louise Jukes ( 2), Sophie Keen (1), Lesley Robb (1), Luxembourg Paige Garvey.

The sky is the limit for British aces after Luxembourg victory While strong in defence GB failed to capitalise with turnovers, but coach Morten Arvidsson worked hard with the players to turn defence into quick attack, and they did just that against Luxembourg.

Within the first five minutes they were 4-1 ahead, with the first goal from Although not playing in coming Louise the tournament itself, the Hertfordshire’s GB team were invited to Jukes, who only took up the region by the president the sport a few months of the International ago after taking part in the Handball Federation, Dr Talent ID programme.

Over the next 15 Hassan Moustafa, where they have mixed with minutes they attacked well some of the top 24 teams and Yvette Frings was in in the world and gained fine form, adding four valuable experience of top- goals in succession.

At the other end level competition.

After narrowly losing out Haslingden HC product to the French Police side Cerys Walker was having in a friendly fixture, the GB a fantastic game in goal, team took on Luxembourg saving eight of the 13 at Beauvais and learned shots she faced. GB pulled the lessons of their defeat away to a 13 – 4 lead, but then suffered a mini earlier in the week.

THE Great Britain women’s handball team took a major scalp last week when they beat Luxembourg 36-26 to mark a successful end to their stay in France, where the World Championship is taking place.

collapse as came back into the game with seven goals to only two from GB as the gap narrowed to just four goals.

But after half time, GB gradually regained control with the team again working well in defence and setting up counter attacks which 15-year-old Chloe Lam-Moores eagerly accepted, the Haslingden HC product scoring six times.

All the team got in on the scoring act with Britt Goodwin contributing seven goals, and Frings ended with eight despite being red-carded for a third two-minute penalty.

The match was witnessed by IHF president Dr Moustafa, who posed for photographs with the squad and was impressed with the progress this young side is making under coach Arvidsson.

Stars of tomorrow in plea for more opponents A NEW handball club at Dulwich College Prep School in London is appealing for fresh opposition to help them develop into the stars of tomorrow.

More than 20 boys aged 1113 took up the sport after a new sports hall was built at the school, and with several of the players showing real talent, organiser Mark Mitchell is

appealing for other clubs or schools to come forward.

The boys have been split into two groups, and after four matches it is all square, with two draws and a win apiece for Dinamo DCPS and the Dulwich Olympians!

Any groups of clubs from the south London, Surrey or Kent area who want to take on the Dulwich boys can contact Mark Mitchell at mgm@dcpslondon.org

Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports for the British Handball Association. For details contact 0845 230 0804 or see www.englandhandball.com

HANDBALL NEWS English edition 13, December 11 2007, Page Two

BOLTON BOOST PLAY-OFF HOPES IT MAY only be December but the race for places in the end of season play-offs is hotting up, as demonstrated by the epic battle between Bolton and Liverpool in National Division One (North) at Turf Moor, Burnley, on Sunday.

Level on league points heading into the match, there was little to choose between third-placed Liverpool and fourthplaced Bolton who drew 36-36 last time they met, but it was the Lancashire outfit who edged Sunday’s game, 25-23.

Liverpool got off to a quick start and opened up an early four-goal lead which they held for much of the first half. However, a run of quick interceptions and fast break attacks from Bolton's Andre Kafack brought them back

to within two goals at half time, 14-12.

Some strong defence from veterans Dave Brookes and Kristian Marsh and some excellent attacking play from Kafack and Patrik Jankowiak quickly saw Bolton reel in the deficit and open up their own two-goal lead.

Liverpool were never out of it though, and they started to find gaps once again in the Bolton defence to keep themselves in the game, but they could not catch their rivals.

Manchester were made to work hard by plucky rivals Wirral before scoring a 33-28 victory on Sunday.

Despite only having one win from seven games, Wirral played a confident game and were unlucky to lose with Mark Evans and Jason Roberts scoring excellent goals.

A cold hall made for a slow start, but once into their stride Manchester built a lead with some good sequences.

But poor finishing on the wings and too many lost balls in fast breaks gave Wirral a way back.

The score remained close throughout, until the final few minutes when Manchester pulled away to a five-goal win.

The match looks set to be the last for Manchester’s founding father Jose Armesto, pictured top left, who is returning to Spain after four years of fantastic service with the club and the EHA. Club official Karim Hammache paid tribute to his colleague, saying: “His contribution, passion, dedication and commitment to the club will be missed by everyone who knows him.”

Schools get the handball bug MORE and more youngsters are discovering what an exciting game handball can be, and the latest children to be bitten by the bug are in Sheffield, where several schools took part in a recent tournament at the Sheffield United Football Academy.

After five weeks of training in the basics of the

EHA Survey THERE is still time to take part in England Handball’s online survey about the future of the game.

For more details, point your browser at Englandhandball.com.

game, year five and six pupils from schools around the Owlerton and Southey Green areas took part in the competition, which was the second organised by Activity Sheffield.

The eventual winners, Parson Cross Primary, pictured, narrowly beat Grenoside Primary in the final.

Monteney School received a fair play award, but all who played showed skill and dedication.

RESULTS, December 9 Men's National Division One North (Turf Moor): Manchester Univ 35 Haslingden 27, Wirral 28 Manchester 33, Bolton 25 Liverpool 23.

Men's National Division One South (Leyton): Oxford 37 Olympia 30, Ruislip 23 Cambridge 38.

Postponed: Southampton v Great Dane.

FIXTURES, December 15 Women's National Division One South (Leyton, London): Oxford v Great Dane, Ruislip v Southampton Univ, Squirrels v Nottingham.

FIXTURES, December 16 Men's National Division One North (Bellevue, Manchester): Manchester Univ v Wirral, Manchester v Bolton, Liverpool v Liverpool SG. Men's National Division One South (Leyton, London): Great Dane v Olympia, Cambridge v Nottingham Univ, Oxford Univ v Ruislip.

Women's National Division One North (Greenbank, Liverpool): Liverpool v Bolton, Haslingden v Tryst, Wirral v Manchester.

Men's National Lge Division One (North) TEAM P W L D F A Diff Manchester U 8 8 0 0 236 135 101 Manchester 7 6 1 0 193 159 34 Bolton 7 4 2 1 226 211 15 Liverpool 8 3 4 1 207 189 18 Haslingden 7 2 5 0 155 181 -26 Wirral 8 1 7 0 132 196 -64 Liverpool SG 7 1 6 0 98 179 -81

Pt 16 12 9 7 4 2 2

Men's National Lge Division One (South) TEAM P W L D F A Diff Cambridge 7 6 1 0 230 173 57 Oxford Univ 8 5 2 1 223 193 30 Great Dane 5 5 0 0 130 74 50 Olympia 6 3 3 0 165 163 2 Ruislip 7 2 4 1 180 209 -29 Southampton 6 0 6 0 126 173 -47 Nottingham U 5 0 5 0 95 164 -69

Pt 12 11 10 6 5 0 0

Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports for the British Handball Association. For details contact 0845 230 0804 or see www.englandhandball.com

HANDBALL NEWS English edition 14, December 18 2007

MANCHESTER SURVIVE BOLT FROM THE BLUE

MANCHESTER kept alive their title hopes with a one-goal victory over rivals Bolton at Bellevue, but they had to fight for every last score against a superb Bolton side.

With several victories under their belts this season Bolton were determined not to let this match go, and were out for revenge following an eight-goal defeat earlier in the season at the hands of Sunday’s opponents.

From the first minute the game was played at a fast pace, but neither side gained more than one goal’s lead before

the other team came battling back.

Goals from Manchester's Tomas Lasek were quickly countered by Bolton's Andre Kafack and Patryk Jankowiak.

When Manchester's strong defence managed to stop the Bolton half backs some nifty passes were met with well taken goals by Bolton's Dave Brookes on the line.

However, the real heroes of the day were the two goalkeepers.

Manchester’s keeper Fabien Lauret kept them from going behind on numerous occasions

Liverpool go third, but only after tough clash LIVERPOOL moved up to third in the table after beating fellow Merseyside club Liverpool Speke Garston 30-25, but were made to work hard by their rapidly-improving rivals.

After being outfought in their last encounter the newcomers to Division One were determined to not to suffer the same fate, and they came psyched up for the clash.

In the early exchanges Liverpool SG threatened first with numerous chances.

However, a clinical Liverpool scored freely with Phil Church, a stalwart for Liverpool for many years, helped himself to a hatful of goals including five penalties.

Liverpool SG lacked their usual fluency in attack and could not break down a determined Liverpool defence.

James Smith, on his return to the LSG team, brought back an attacking bite to the side with nine goals, aided by Peter Haider and Colin Radcliffe, and the score was an even 14-12 at the break.

Liverpool's French left winger Boucher was in devastating form and scored eight of his side’s goals to equal Phil Church’s tally, and in the final reckoning it was this combination that finally outwitted their rivals.

And as well as the disappointment of defeat, Liverpool SG's Andrew Kinsey dislocated a shoulder. But the final score of 30-25 was much closer than many would have predicted.

with superb saves from close range shots by Kafack, Jankowiak and Brookes. And the Bolton Keeper, Sam Hanvey, likewise kept the scores tight with a number of critical saves.

Going into the last minute of the game Manchester held a crucial one goal lead.

Despite a last ditch assault by the Bolton team, another vital save by the Manchester keeper ensured that they ended up victorious.

Meanwhile leaders Manchester University Manchester's Aurelien Bouche gets some close attention had to battle before from Bolton's Adrian Hoxha. Pic: Shaun Criscuolo. beating Wirral 30-24.

RESULTS, December 16

Great Dane keep the pressure on Cambridge

Men's National Div One North (Bellevue): Manchester Univ 30 Wirral 24, Manchester 32 Bolton 31, Liverpool 30 Liverpool SG 25.

Men's National Div One South (Leyton): Great Dane maintained 23 Olympia 12, Cambridge 32 Nottingham Univ 21

GREAT Dane their push for top spot in the Southern Division after scoring a comfortable 23-12 win over Olympia at Leyton, London, on Sunday.

Despite being without many first team players and only having nine names on the game sheet, Great Dane hit the ground running with three early goals. Although Olympia hit back with three of their own, Great Dane looked calm and collected throughout.

But they remain two points behind leaders Cambridge, who were playing bottom of the table Nottingham University and ran out 32-21 winners.

However, with their goal difference just seven apart, much will be decided when the Cambridge and Great Dane meet on January 20.

Men's National Lge Division One (North) TEAM Manchester U Manchester Liverpool Bolton Haslingden Wirral Liverpool SG

P W 9 9 8 7 9 4 8 4 7 2 9 1 8 1

L D F A Diff Pt 0 0 266 159 107 18 1 0 225 190 35 14 4 1 237 214 23 9 3 1 257 243 14 9 5 0 155 181 -26 4 8 0 156 226 -70 2 7 0 123 209 -86 2

Men's National Lge Division One (South) TEAM Cambridge Oxford Univ Great Dane Olympia Ruislip Southampton Nottingham U

P W 8 7 8 5 6 6 7 3 7 2 6 0 6 0

L D F A Diff Pt 1 0 262 194 68 14 2 1 223 193 30 11 0 0 153 86 66 12 4 0 177 186 -9 6 4 1 180 209 -29 5 6 0 126 173 -47 0 6 0 116 196 -80 0

Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports for the British Handball Association. For details contact 0845 230 0804 or see www.englandhandball.com