5 factors that gave “Sharjah Hand” the “historic” Asian achievement

Member of the Board of Directors of the Sharjah Sports Club and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Collegiate Games, Muhammad Obaid Al-Hussan, revealed five prominent factors that paved the way for the “Golden Generation” to achieve the historic achievement and crown the title of the Asian Club Championship, Champions League Handball, by defeating the defending champion Al-Khaleej in the final. Saudi Arabia (28-27), at the end of the 27th edition on which the curtain came down, last Saturday, in Qatar.

Al-Hussan told Emirates Today: “The continuous work of the club’s boards of directors, and the success in the continuity of long-term strategies, resulted in the creation of a golden generation of handball at the Sharjah Club, and since its real launch in the 2016-2017 season, it has been able to highlight its identity as a (championship team). Within 10 years, it broke records, especially since it was the country’s club with the most titles, in addition to continuing to raise the level of achievements, reaching Foreign tournaments include the UAE-Bahraini Super Cup and the Asian Club Championship.”

Children of the game

Al-Hussan stressed that “the club’s boards of directors placing their trust in the people of the game to adopt the implementation of these strategies, allowed the current generation of administrators and supervisors of the game, who at the end of their careers lived with a number of experienced players of the current golden generation, to find the correct standards for development mechanisms.”

Dream team

Al-Hussan said, “The concept of continuity of generational progression at the level of age groups contributed to creating the identity of the ‘Dream Team’, the first fruits of which appeared in the league and cup double in the 2016-2017 season, before successive achievements towards breaking local records and raising the level of ambitions for foreign titles. The current players won the 32nd championship out of 48 titles abounding in the club’s coffers.”

Asian experiences

Al-Hussan said, “The accumulation of experience gained by this group, since Sharjah was crowned with bronze in the 2018 and 2019 editions, contributed to identifying the shortcomings, not in terms of developing the players’ physical and technical performance, but rather by creating contracts that serve the team in its continental ambition, so that the 27th edition in Doha can bear the success of our players.” In dealing with pressure, and the ability of the team’s goalkeeper, Mohamed Al-Taher, in the semi-finals to save a penalty kick at the end of the match, I was awarded (The King) victory over Kazma Al-Kuwaiti (28-27), repeating the scenario in the final, and succeeding in overturning our deficit to a wonderful comeback with the result, and seizing the victory in the final seconds (27-26).”

Smart contracts

Regarding the role of contracts in the historical achievement, Al-Hussan said: “Supplementing the team’s ranks with the Qatari international and Al-Gharafa player Zarko Markovic, and the Qatar national team goalkeeper and Al-Arabi player Erhad Gliudzic, in addition to the Tunisian international Rayan Bin Mahmoud, loaned from Shabab Al-Ahly Club, provided a real approach in giving the team the required addition.” To move forward beyond the semi-finals, and aspire to win the title.”

A coach from the club

Al-Hussan confirmed that the current coach, Mohamed Kishk, had previously played with a player with the team, with three of the current experienced players, most notably the team captain, Ahmed Hilal. He said: “The coach Mohamed Kishk’s deep understanding of the work system within the club contributed to his ability to achieve communication.” Greater than the players, especially those with experience, and extracting the maximum from what they have, which is what our players demonstrated in their great commitment to teamwork and the ability to achieve quick harmony with game plans, especially with the new professionals who joined during the preparatory camp. “For the championship.”