Stephan The Man

Bye Bye Herlev

Yesterday Team Herlev played its last team match of the season against Odense and I played my last team match for Herlev. I will start with our result from last night. Our team ended up being defeated by a better team, 12-1. However that was not the story. Our coach reminded us that this year we all knew that we would be going down from division 1. He also reminded us the reason we decided to play, the challenge of competition, see how far we can push our level but most importantly to really try and have great team spirit and play as a whole and not as individuals. It has been tough to have that attitude all season but I believe that last night, NOBODY left their teammate behind. All the way through, the team was there for one another and if you were a spectator walking in, you would have no clue who was winning since we never showed signs of defeat. That was great to experience last night and what makes it fun to play in the Danish badminton league.
I would like to thank Herlev and everyone on the team for 2 years of great badminton and great fun. It is always such a privilege to be able to do the thing you love with people who feel the same for the sport. Also to bring a foreigner into the club and treat him immidiatly as part of the team is quite unique. Herlev has been able to keep my dream of training here in Copenhagen alive for 2 years and it is with my utmost sincerity that I thank you.
Best of luck with the next season.

Herlev vs Solrod

Today we played Solrod at their home club. We were hoping to win 3 matches today but only ended up with one.So we have to thank Michelle Chan of New Zealand for that win. My match was long and hard faught. As I mentioned before I got VERY sick over the weekend and have not been training at all since Thursday. So during my match I was not able to play fast. I lost 21-14 in the first set but found the right rythm to play. I thought to myself “If I can’t play fast then I will have to play ULTRA slow and go for a run” which really worked and I took the second set 21-17. In the third we were all even at 18-18 and then I made a bonehead mistake by serving out! I then lost the next two points and lost the match 21-18 in the third. Given the circumstance I did the best I could but I am cursing myself for letting it go at the very end. At the end of the evening the team lost 12-1 but almost everyone played quite well. Now i will be going to bed and having nightmares about that serve at 18-18.
One more team match left until the season is over and that will be against Odense in Odense on the 30th of March.
Till then I will try and get healthy and get my training back on track.

Herlev vs Triton Aalborg

Today we played our 3rd playoff match against Triton Aalborg. They are a strong team, 3rd highest in the division, and last time we played we got crushed. I was out on a mission today, since I had previously lost to their number 1 guy…Taufiq Hidayat from Indonesia. So my mission was revenge!
Ohh how sweet this victory was, since it was on our home courts in front of our home crowd. Sweet as apple pie:) I ended up winning 21-11 21-15.
We ended up losing our doubles in two straight sets but once again i feel that my partner and I are improving every match and enjoying the process.
The team played better than all the previous team matches. We ended up losing 5-8. We took two ladies singles, two men’s singles and one ladies doubles. Again I think the team is heading in the right direction and always keeping its head high.
Our next team match will be on the 16th of March against Solrød Str. I hope that this time not only do I get to have the sweet taste of victory but the team as well.
See you then!!

Herlev vs Kastrup

Today’s team match was against Kastrup who are the 5th team in Division 1.  We lost 9-4 but I think the team in general played very well.  Good team spirit, good fighting in every match and good overall support for each other.  I played the first men’s single against Thomas Fynbo of Denmark.  I had a barn burner and pulled it out 21-14, 21-23, 21-16.  It felt very good to get another win under my belt.  In the men’s doubles we had quite a tough match against Michael Sogaard and Mikkel Elborn Larsen. We ended up losing 26-24 21-6.  However I think that it was a good doubles match since my partner and me were getting better at maintaining the attack and pushing forward.

Our next team match will be this Saturday the 21st against Aalborg who are 3rd in the Division….should be fun!:)