Chambray Touraine Handball
JDA Dijon
She sits proudly at the top of the rankings. In very good company, since she stands alongside Metz and Brest, these two “cannibals” who aspire to leave only crumbs for their adversaries. Equally intractable, the JDA Dijon (3e) has had a faultless run since the start of the season, since it is undefeated in the championship and in the European League.
But Clément Alcacer is not bragging. Certainly satisfied with this assessment, the Dijon coach, who arrived this summer from Nice, nonetheless remains pragmatic and cautious. Especially when traveling to Fontaine Blanche, facing a Chambray team in direct competition for European places.
Clément, how was your arrival in Dijon?
“Very, very good!” It's a project that lives up to what was sold to me, with a very structured club. The working conditions are quite exceptional in women's handball, so I'm very happy here. »
What assessment do you make of your start to the season?
“Rather positive, obviously! But we are also lucid because we have a fairly favorable schedule at the start of the season compared to our direct opponents. We won in Besançon (32-36)and that's a really good result, we also beat Plan-de-Cuques at home (26-23). But otherwise, our other adversaries are more likely to hold on. However, these are results that must be achieved if you want to be European. We are aligned on our path forward, but the match at Chambray will be a real indicator. If we win it, we will have had a good start to the season. Otherwise it will be correct. »
What do you think are the strengths of your team and, on the contrary, the points to work on?
“Our strength is that the team is very homogeneous, everyone can score. Danger can come from anywhere. This should push adversaries to ask questions to outwit us. On the other hand, we need to be more regular, more serene. We have small gaps. We must avoid them or, at least, ensure that they are as short as possible. »
Are you happy with what the team is producing so far?
“It’s progressing outing after outing, apart from the match at Sambre (during the previous day, victory 21-27), who was a little below in the desire to implement our project. But we still have work to do. We are not at all at the maximum of what we should be able to produce. Individually, some girls can do much better, although they may not suspect it (laughs). Collectively, it’s coming together little by little. There is a little change in the group, not a lot (three recruits) but we still have to integrate the news. And then, there is my arrival: even if it remains consistent with what was done before, there is a lot of new stuff to digest. So it takes a little time, but with the schedule we had, and even the European Cup which offered us more work matches, we were able to work. »
Indeed, you flew through your second qualifying round of the European League, against the Austrians of Hypo (42-26 then 28-16)…
“Yeah, and we were able to get everyone playing, which was nice. But the objective is the main trick. There's one more round to go (against the Croatians of ZRK Zrinski Cakovec)with a first leg this weekend. There is a real desire to qualify, but for the moment, we are focusing on Chambray, it is our most important match. Because the club's objective is to play in Europe every year, and to achieve this, it is the championship that counts. »
Exactly, what do you think of this Chambray team?
“It is very coherent, with a fairly solid group. She has shooters, duel players… It’s very complete. People are saying that Chambray is having a bad start to the season. So yes, in terms of results, it's not crazy, but the home performances have been consistent, so we clearly have to be wary of it. And that’s what we focused the speech on. It's both exciting to prepare and, at the same time, as danger can come from anywhere, you have to think carefully! But that’s why we do this job! »
Wednesday November 6 at 8 p.m., Fontaine Blanche gymnasium, live on beIN Sports and Handball TV.
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