A remarkable performance has brought a bronze medal in the Western group of the women's adult second division (NB I/B) for the team of NEKA, whose young players took this unique opportunity to make their mark among more experienced teams consisting of players of a higher age.

In his evaluation, head coach dr. Péter Woth emphasized that the success was a common achievement, as the members of the squad worked with Beáta Bohus and Ákos Vártok, but the activities of the professional staff also contributed to the successful season.

–      During the 2020/2021 season, the team of dr. Péter Woth in the NB I/B league trained together, and the squad was actually the same as the one of the first youth team of NEKA, led by Beáta Bohus. Initially, due to the many uncertainties, there were no big targets.

–      We started the season with practically the same goal as in previous years: to just avoid relegation. This was especially understandable in the light of the fact that due to the first division start of the Boglár Academy-SZISE, we could count on less “adult” players in our squad, ten to twelve by the number. We could not have a clear idea about what kind of opponents we were going to have in this group, plus we had to reckon with five relegated teams this year, so the ranking sufficient in previous years would not have been enough this time. We did not know if there was any chance of receiving available players from the top division (NB I) squad to help us, and how the NB I/B and the youth championships would function simultaneously. All in all, we set a 7thplace finish as our target, which would have meant avoiding relegation safely.

–      Then, on the contrary, victories came in a row and, surprisingly, in the last league match against Kozármisleny, even the silver medal was up for grabs.

–      We can be proud to have played all the way till the end a close match away from home to a team, which started the season aiming at becoming champions. And having done so without any of the first division players at our disposal. This also clearly shows the fact that the kids have grown up and could live up to the task. I have to add, no one knows what would have happened if the age group championships hadn’t ended due to Covid and we would have had to cope with the double workload.

–      How did the youngsters adapt to elder, more experienced opponents?

–      Everyone had better and worse moments, but there were obviously more of the good ones. We can say for sure that players “on loan” from the first division (NB I) team were always able to provide stability for us, and a consequence of that the “younger ones” could also play more freely. You can clearly see at the academy how the kids are developing week by week, in various aspects, meaning physically, technically, or mentally. Participation in the NB I/B division obviously presented an excellent opportunity for them since our players could have reached this level only in one or two years given a normal situation. In that case this season they could only play partial roles. By comparison, they have become key actors. The girls born in 2004/2005 would normally prepare for the U16 league playoffs next week.

–      As a summary, what are your conclusions of this year?

 

–      We are glad that the kids did so well, that we were able to solve it with relatively few injuries, we were able to survive the Covid period. And with the exception of the quarantine period, we did not have to postpone a single match because someone could not return, we always did field a team either with players born in 2003 or younger ones. We have always tried to get the most out of a given situation and use our resources in a way that we can turn things into something positive. This is a very important value. Of course, the bronze medal is a joint achievement, the division of tasks worked well with Beáta Bohus and Ákos Vártok, and we owe thanks for the work of physiotherapists, fitness coaches and all members of the professional staff.

 

Laura Nagy, captain of the team: “This season has been a very good learning experience for us, we knew it was going to be a tough and busy year. During the season, we were able to learn a lot in the competitive matches from the much older and more experienced players. I am proud because we wanted to make it harder for the opponent in every match, which resulted in a lot of surprise victories. The pandemic situation has made things difficult for us many times, but we have overcome all obstacles that show how persistent and purposeful our small team is. We did not even think about it at the beginning of the year, but the hard and consistent work has come to fruition and brought the bronze medal. Many thanks to our coaches for their work during the whole season, for their patience and the lots of sweat.”