Saint-Raphaël Var handball returns to the European Cup

After 2,317 days without a European Cup, or six years, four months, and three days, Saint-Raphaël Var handball returns to continental competition. Fifth at the end of the previous Starligue season, the Var team will play the first of their two matches this Saturday (4 p.m.) against the Danish team Mors-Thy. This qualifying round could thus validate last year's result and take them to the group stage, where some enticing matches await them.

"We've been working to be physically and mentally ready," insists coach Benjamin Braux. "It's a play-off match, with a two-legged format. We'll have to play every ball with the same value. All of them will be important."

An opponent already in form

SRVHB are facing the fourth-placed team from the last Danish league. The club with the eagle crest won its first Herre Handbold Ligaen match on Wednesday against HOJ Elite (26-27). Unlike the Raphaëlois, who officially kick off their season with this match, the players from the Jutland province are already in the thick of things.

Despite this, Saint-Raphaël has been familiar with two opponents accustomed to European competition since their preparations. Despite two defeats against Montpellier and Porto, Johannes Marescot's teammates (who won their other two friendlies) have found their rhythms again.

"We have to demystify what we're doing," the technician says. "Of course, this match is special. There are contextual elements that we don't yet know: the venue, the Finnish referees... We're going to rely on what we know, like our values. We've rediscovered our identity, which we've evolved a little, without revolutionizing everything."

Conquering Jutland

Saint-Raphaël is feeling a bit out of place for their return to the continental scene. After training in the morning, the group took a coach to Nice airport for a flight to Copenhagen.

Once they arrived in the kingdom's capital, the players and staff then took a second flight to Aalborg, in the northernmost part of the country. Then, finally, after a final bus transfer to their hotel, the group was able to unpack their bags shortly after 8 p.m. last night. Well, almost all of them, since the missing bags of balls and jerseys were due to arrive later that evening.

This little trip also brings back good memories for some. "You always feel a kind of unknown when you go to places where the culture is different. It adds a bit of exoticism to our life as high-level athletes ," says Arthur Vigneron, the only witness still at the club of the Final Four in Magdeburg in 2018 ( read elsewhere) . In Germany as in Denmark, you have the impression of playing in the cradle of handball. It's both impressive and exciting."

Lang: "It's not easy to play in Denmark!"

Although it took nine hours to reach Hanstholm (in northwest Denmark), where they will be staying, the journey is far from some of the adventures. "It took us 16 hours to get to Slovenia by bus," the right winger recalls. "Some guys had made cardboard stands to play on the console."

Amidst the pack, which is currently free of any pressure, Andreas Lang isn't the loudest, as usual. The man who played for three seasons at SonderjyskE will be returning to a club he's already faced. "There are often a lot of people in the stands. The Danes are great at cheering," recalls the Swedish right-back. "It's not easy at all to play there. You can't go there expecting to win. It's always difficult, as evidenced by the fact that they're capable of winning at home against Aalborg (the reigning champions, in September 2024) ." The calm before the storm.