Vác prepare for bigger challenges

Main facts

• Vác beat Swiss side LC Brühl in round 3 to qualify for the group phase
• left wing Natalie Schatzl is the sister of Györi Audi ETO KC left wing Nadine
• Laura Kürthi and Noémi Bárdy both have knee ligament injures and will miss the whole season.
• former team captain Konszuéla Hámori and up-and-coming star left back Gréta Kácsor left the squad

Most important question: Can they get past the group phase?

Former Hungarian national Erika Kis-Máténé Kirsner, who has been Vác’s president since 2011, has a clear goal for the European League season.

“Before this season, one of our objectives was to repeat and reach the group phase in the European League. Our team made this objective successfully, and the next target is to earn more points than in last two years,” Kirsner says.

Vác finished with only one wins in each season and were outplayed in away games.

“We would like to improve our performance at games far from our arena and we would like to repeat our good level at our home matches as well,” she adds.

Although the Hungarian side produces many talented youngsters, the depth of the squad is not their biggest strength.

“To achieve our dreams will be a very hard job for us, because in the group stage we will meet only very good teams from the top leagues from Europe, and meanwhile we need to be successful in the Hungarian League as well, which will be a serious task in this very busy schedule,” thinks Kirsner.

Still, the importance of EHF European League for the club is unquestionable. “Of course, when our team is playing in European League matches especially in the group phase it is always a big pleasure for us, because only a few teams can reach this stage from Hungary. For our young team this will be a very good experience, they will learn a lot of things from these matches,” finishes the president.

How they rate themselves

Vác are currently in the middle of the Hungarian league but have only played five matches while the other teams mostly have seven or eight under their belts.  

The current squad is set up to run and score a lot – as proven by their performance against Brühl in qualification round 3, which saw them put 68 goals past their opponents in the doubleheader.

“It is a huge honour for our team to play in the European League and every year we want to at least reach the group phase, but I hope that if everyone puts 100 per cent or even a little bit more into our matches we can achieve bigger goals,” Kirsner says.

Under the spotlight: Fanny Helembai

Team captain Fanny Helembai, who was part of the national team at the Women’s EHF EURO 2020 and at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games has never played in any other club than Vác. She is the engine of the club’s defence and the mental leader.

The 25-year-old line player says: “I would be happy if we could advance to the quarter-finals, however we have a very young team and we have some players who are playing at the international level for the first time in their lives.”

What the numbers say

Vác have a team of mostly young Hungarian talents. In the current roster, nobody is from abroad and the average age of the line is less than 23.

Did you know?

Gábor Herbert recently joined the club as head coach from Orosházi FKSE. The former national team member won the domestic championship and cup as a player. Before Orosháza, worked with youngsters at Pick Szeged.

Arrivals and departures:

Newcomers (including former club): Fanni Csizmadia (Békéscsaba), Anna Ballai (FTC -Rail Cargo Hungaria), Nikolett Marincsák (MTK Budapest), Laura Kürthi (Györi Audi ETO KC), Kira Bánfai (MTK Budapest)

Left the club (including new club): Andrea Aron (Szent István SE), Petra Balogh (Szombathely), Vivien Grosch (MTK Budapest), Konszuéla Hámori (DVSC), Gréta Kácsor (DVSC), Zsófia Szondi (Eszterházy SC), Csenge Csatlós (Pázmánd)

Past achievements

EHF European League Women
Participations (including 2022/23 season): 3

EHF Cup
Quarter-finals (1): 2010/11
Last 16 (2): 2011/12, 2013/14

Cup Winners’ Cup
Quarter-finals (2): 2003/04, 2012/13