The scepticism among coaches regarding the 2016 change to the seven-vs-six rule in handball has not diminished in the past four years, and many see it as a confirmation. In a survey conducted by Björn Pazen, thirty coaches spoke out for a return to the old rule, four coaches would like to see changes to the new rule and five want to keep the rule as it is. One of the critic is Velimir Petkovic, former coach of German clubs Wetzlar, Göppingen, Eisenach and Füchse Berlin and now the national coach of the Russian selection, in an interview about #7vs6.
In your opinion, did handball become more attractive as a result of the rule change towards the seventh field player?
– Clearly: no! In the rule book, handball is a sport with six field players and a goalkeeper, not 7 against 6. With this rule, handball becomes a completely different – but certainly not more attractive – game. I have often spoken to colleagues about the fact that handball can and must be made more attractive – but it is certainly not possible with this rule, which I have always been against and will remain.
Has the basic idea of handball changed as a result of this new rule?
– The basic idea has not changed, but many things have gotten worse. For example, suspensions used to mean a majority, no longer today, which means that this idea of ??punishment has disappeared. And I emphasize again: Handball is a sport with a goalkeeper, not without. This new rule also destroys the creativity of the players. And last but not least: the court is designed for six attackers and six defenders, with seven players there is no movement at all. Players have no space.
How have your style of play and your team“s playing system regarding goalkeeper, attack and defence changed as a result of this rule change?
– In 90 percent of all 7vs6 situations, there is no movement in the attack, the ball is simply passed, the players are standing. The attackers are just waiting for mistakes of the defence, there are no more one-on-one situations which make handball so attractive. There are no longer any individual or group actions to get a majority. In addition, the defence is limited, it all comes down to a 6-0 defence, other variants no longer exist, which is also against the basic idea of having different defence systems. This limits the tactical possibilities of the trainers.
Does this rule make weaker teams stronger – or does it tend to reward coaches who take a higher risk?
– In the beginning it was still surprising when a coach used this 7-by-6 variant for a single attack, but when teams play consistently with superiority today, that`s really an advantage for weak teams, but as mentioned, the game is not more attractive because fans don`t want to see that for 60 minutes.
How do you see particularly the „empty-net-goals“ and their impact on handball?
– How am I supposed to explain this to the spectators when a player hits the empty goal from 40 meters while the goalkeeper is sitting on the bench? It has nothing to do with handball, it is a degradation of our sport by a rule that nobody needs. In basketball, a good throw is always in the basket, in handball a good throw does not mean that it is also a goal – because there are goalkeepers. This rule simply takes away the advantage of good goalkeeping from handball.
If you had the chance to do so, would you undo this rule change?
– I would abolish the rule immediately.
