Unity, team spirit, family: Austria reveal recipe for results

“We might be onto something here,” thought Pajovic, when many would have dubbed him crazy for thinking that Austria could seal a main round berth at the EHF EURO 2024, in a group with Croatia, Spain and Romania.

But Pajovic, a player who wrote history for Slovenia scoring 697 goals in 181 matches, and has been serving as Austria’s head coach since 2019, was really onto something. He believed when nobody wrote off Austria. He instilled a culture that produced excellent results.

And now, Austria are in the main round of the EHF EURO 2024, producing the biggest shock in the competition, as they sent Spain, who have been in the semi-finals in the past six editions of the European premium competition, packing after an entertaining 33:33 draw.

It was Austria’s second consecutive draw, after holding Croatia in a 28:28 deadlock earlier in the preliminary round, with a team that has 10 players featuring in the unheralded Austrian league, plus another player, veteran Janko Bozovic, featuring in the Kuwaiti league.

“Two draws to qualify? My heart is definitely not good right now,” jokes Pajovic, after his side’s excellent performances in the preliminary round. “I could not take one close match here, after what we went through in the last 15 minutes against Croatia and Spain.”

There are only three Austrian players – right wing Robert Weber, right back Janko Bozovic and right back Boris Zivkovic – who are 30 years old or more. Three others are 29 years old. Star Nikola Bilyk is only 27 years old. Therefore, Austria have created the perfect mix of youth and experience for the EHF EURO 2024, with plenty of players who have been together for a long time.

“The first thing we had together was time. I have been in this position since 2019, so for nearly four years and a half, and there was no pressure. We have been able to build a team together, a team, not a group of individuals, and we were sure the results would come. Therefore, we are over the moon with this performance and we are very happy with what we achieved, especially in a group so tough, with two powerhouses like Spain and Croatia,” says Pajovic.

“But what we really have here is a tightly knit group of players, an excellent team, with individuals who would do everything for each other and for the good of the team. This is the biggest and most important thing we could create in this environment.”

For the fourth consecutive time at the EHF EURO, Austria have finished without a win in 2018 and 2022, conceding three losses each time, but showed their potential when they were co-hosts, in 2020, when they ended up in eighth place.

“Team spirit. Family. Unity,” says left back Nikola Bilyk when asked about what worked for Austria in this edition of the EHF EURO. The THW Kiel star, who is on the verge of entering the top 10 in the all-time goal scorer standings for Austria, was also ecstatic about his team’s performance.

After the draw against Spain, Bilyk was captured on the court with tears in his eyes, failing to grasp the enormity of the performance his team put up against the runners-up of the EHF EURO 2022 and the winners of the 2018 and 2020 editions.

“Look, this is a very special moment and I was soaking it up with my teammates and my friends. We have grown together, many of us have played together since the junior or youth teams, and it has been one hell of a journey. But now, we are here, and we have always believed we can do something special,” adds Bilyk.

Of course, terms like unity, family and team spirit are widely sprinkled into quotes by many players from many teams. Here, though, it seems true. The words are not thrown into the quotes mixer, they seem to be coming from the heart. Austria’s performances have been refreshing and with the proper mindset, it looks like everything can fall into place. Even a huge upset like the one produced in Mannheim.

“We have worked a lot together in the past years and I had to work a lot mentally with the players. Of course, everything starts with a good defence and this is one aspect of the game that we are strongly focusing on. But we really worked with the players to empower them and create a mindset that can produce good results. It worked like a charm here,” continues Pajovic.

But what are the challenges lying ahead for Austria, in a tough main round group, where they face France, Germany, Hungary and Iceland in the special Lanxess Arena in Cologne?

“As you probably saw, we did not rotate a lot. We had the same eight-nine players featuring for large chunks of the matches. So the first thing is to see others rise to the challenge, because it is draining to play for 50-55 minutes each match, seven matches in such a short time. Then, we will face some very tough opponents, but we are ready and we hope to deliver some good performances. Our objective has been met, though,” adds Austria’s coach.

Bilyk doubles down on the challenge and eagerly awaits the start of the main round, when Austria face Hungary in Cologne.

“For many players, this will be a first. The first time they play in front of so many fans, therefore it will be special. Some of us are used to it, some of us are not, but I am just happy that we are here and we can experience this, especially as Germany will also be playing in Cologne. This is handball and we are here,” concludes Austria’s left back.

Photos © Kolektiff Images