Flensburg to join ‘Club of 200’
It was 11 October 2003, the Liseberg Arena in Gothenburg. Swedish champions Redbergslids, including world stars such as Magnus Wislander or Magnus Jernemyr, hosted a club which was having its debut in the EHF Champions League: SG Flensburg-Handewitt.
The Northern German side had already left their mark on European handball, winning the EHF Cup in 1997, the City Cup in 1999, and the Cup Winners’ Cup in 2001. But this match in 2003 in Gothenburg was their first ever EHF Champions League appearance. This weekend, Flensburg will play their 200th match in Europe's top flight.
Coached by the Swede Kent-Harry Andersson and Christian Berge, who nowadays leads the Norwegian national team, Flensburg made a successful start to their EHF Champions League history, winning that match in Sweden 34:33, including four goals from their Danish left wing Lars Christiansen.
“Right now, when you remind me, I remember this match. Yep, it was the start of a great international season,” Christiansen says.
Their journey only ended in the finals
And what a season it would become for Flensburg. Having been runners-up in the Bundesliga five times, they finally landed their first German national title while also successfully defending their status as German cup winners.
Their journey in the EHF Champions League only ended in the finals, against RK Pivovarna Lasko Celje. They were the first debutants to go that far in the competition.
“We thought we really had a chance against them, but unfortunately we showed the worst performance of the whole season, losing the away leg 34:28,” Christiansen says.
The 30:28 victory at home was not enough to make up the difference.
Two magic nights - one to remember, one to forget
In that first 2003/04 season, Flensburg already had two magic nights, one to remember, one to forget. They sensationally earned a 30:20 win in the first semi-final leg at home against former EHF Champions League winners SC Magdeburg, but they lost the return leg 36:26 - only to advance to the final based on the away-goal rule.
“This was definitely one of the most remarkable matches ever in my Champions League career,” says Christiansen, who still is the player with the highest number of EHF Champions League matches for Flensburg, together with fellow Dane Thomas Mogensen. Christiansen holds the all-time record of 626 matches and 3,996 goals for Flensburg.
The next season, Christiansen experienced the lowest of lows of his career. Montpellier had dominated the first quarter-final leg against Flensburg 36:22, despite nine goals from Christiansen.
“But the nightmare turned into a dream. Though we seemed chanceless in the second leg, we scored and scored and scored. The fans in the arena went crazy,” the Dane says. “I never experienced an atmosphere like this, when we were suddenly ahead by 14 goals and virtually in the semis with one second to go. But then Gregory Anquetil scored from a direct free throw on the final buzzer for 32:19. From one second to the next, the arena was completely silent, in a complete state of shock. Unbelievable!”
Barcelona quarter-final was Christiansen's highest high
It took the club two years to recover from this defeat, but then came Christiansen’s highest high: the 2006/07 quarter-final against Barcelona.
“This was one of the best SG matches ever,” says Christiansen about the 31:21 victory against the Spanish giants. “They are the most successful club ever in the Champions League, and we really brought them down to the floor. We were a bit shaken in the second leg, but still losing 34:29 was enough to proceed to the semis.”
After two thrillers against Valladolid, Flensburg made it to their second EHF Champions League final - against their archrivals THW Kiel.
“We were so close to win, but again, this is sport. In the first leg at home, we could have won by two, three goals, but Kim Andersson levelled the result with the last shot. In Kiel our defence boss Joachim Boldsen received a very early red card, and we lost.”
The 'Flensational' weekend highlights the club history
In 2010, after 15 years with Flensburg, Christiansen returned to Denmark and played one more season for his home club Kolding before ending his incomplete career: “I am really sad that the Champions League trophy is the only major title missing in my cabinet.”
Four years after Christiansen left, the ‘Flensational’ weekend highlighted the club’s history. Flensburg qualified for the VELUX EHF FINAL4 in Cologne for the first time.
“I was in the arena as I was ambassador for VELUX. And the tears were running down my face when I saw my colleagues celebrating on the floor. With so many of them I had played together for many years, I could absolutely feel how they felt at this moment,” Christiansen says.
“They were down and out in the semi against Barcelona, being six goals behind with only some minutes to play. Then they won the match in the penalty shoot-out,” he adds. “In the end, it’s great to not only win your first ever Champions League title, but to do it against your old enemies from Kiel.”
The result made Flensburg the only club in European Cup history to win all four competitions: City Cup (now Challenge Cup), EHF Cup, Cup Winners’ Cup and Champions League. Flensburg are also the last German club to raise the trophy in Cologne.
On Sunday, against Meshkov Brest (at 19:00 CET live on ehfTV.com), they want to get one step closer to the final destination, the LANXESS Arena. They won the first leg of the Last 16 at Brest last Sunday (30:28) in their 199th match in the competition. Christiansen is sure that his former club will proceed to the quarter-finals.
“They are the favourites, and of course, when you have a historic day like this, you want to be victorious,” says Christiansen, who may or may not attend the 200th EHF Champions League match of his former club: “We have a little boy, and maybe it will be too late for him.”
SG Flensburg-Handewitt will become the seventh club to reach the milestone of 200 EHF Champions League matches, after Barcelona (currently 292), Kiel (276), Veszprém (273), Zagreb (271) and Montpellier (218).
Lars Christensen photo: Benjamin Nolte
TEXT:
Björn Pazen / ew