Noémi Pásztor: "Europe should fear us”

Despite being just 24 years old, Pásztor has plenty of international experience and was part of the Hungarian team which won the 2018 IHF Junior World Championship. Since then, Pásztor spent two seasons at one of the Hungarian powerhouses, FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria before joining M’ovar, as the locals call it.

Not much changed in the line during the summer after they finished fourth in the domestic league. The core of the team is mostly Hungarian players, complemented by experienced foreigners. Their head coach is Janos Gyurka, who wore the Hungarian national jersey 297 times and was a silver medallist at the 1988 IHF Men’s World Championship.

Stability paid off in 2023/24 as the club kicked off the season with 10 wins out of 11 matches – they are currently leading the Hungarian league. During their campaign so far, they have surprised the five-times EHF Champions League winners Györi Audi ETO KC; DVSC Schaeffler, also in the Champions League this season; and fellow European League participants Praktiker-Vác. Only FTC took two points against them.

“The stability that our management provides helps us to reach our goals. We had a great practice camp before the season and as the core stayed together we know each other even better and the more players can step up. Not to mention that the vibe in the locker room is unmatched. We would challenge anybody for the team,” says Pásztor.

Two seasons ago Mosonmagyarovar finished a surprising third in the Hungarian League, which has set their expectations higher since. With more experience and depth, Mosonmagyarovar are ready to face multiple challenges especially when the calendar gets busy and they have to juggle three different competitions.

“Both the management and the players are expecting the bronze medal in the domestic championship behind Györ and FTC, but we do not want to limit ourselves,” Pásztor adds.

“In the cup, we will work hard to reach the final four weekend, while we want to write history in EHF European League group stage by advancing from it. Naturally, it is easier to say than achieve that, but having seen what our team are capable of, we are full of confidence and we believe in each other. Moreover, with our amazing fans, we want to stay unbeaten at home,” explains the line player.

Mosonmagyarovar are in group D with Costa del Sol Malaga from Spain, SCM Targu Jiu from Romania and Sola HK from Norway. As Pásztor is part of the Hungarian national team competing at the 2023 World Championship she has not had time to take a closer look at their opponents. However, one thing seems to be sure, in this quartet each of the sides has a different game style.

“Malaga are full of smaller, quicker players who play with finesse. Sola are just like any Scandinavian team, which means they run a lot, while Targu Jiu’s style is about physicality. Still, on paper, we should qualify to the next round especially if we can keep six points at home.”

One of the Hungarian club’s strengths is that they share the load. Four handballers have already scored more than 40 goals from the squad and Pásztor is among them with 45. Sharing is caring and with M’óvár’s tactics in attack, there is always enough ball for everybody.

“We have implemented some aspects of Scandinavian handball, so we score many times from counter-attacks and quick plays after conceding goals. Every player knows what and when to do, we follow the coaches’ instructions and I am sure that we would find our teammates on the court even blindfolded,” believes Pásztor.

“Nobody cares about the statistics, as soon as somebody sees a better opportunity to score we pass the ball. Handball is a team sport and we are a great team,” she adds.

The 24-year-old Hungarian plans to have some rest before the EHF European League 2023/24 starts for Motherson Mosonmagyarovari KC in January. The first match will be against CSM Targu Jiu at home on 6 January at 20:00 CET.

Photos © Fana, Motherson Mosonmagyarovari KC