A crowd of 11,112 enthusiastic spectators at the Westfalenhalle in Dortmund set a new attendance record for a women's handball match in Germany on Sunday afternoon. The Borussia Dortmund women won a thrilling, intense game against Siófok KC by a 26-23 (10-10) scoreline to secure themselves top spot in Group A of the EHF European League.

Record: Never before had so many spectators attended a women's handball match at club level. The previous record from 1997, which was also set by Borussia Dortmund, stood at 8,700 spectators. A sell-out crowd of 11,112 spectators filled the Westfalenhalle on Sunday afternoon and made for a breathtaking atmosphere. It was simultaneously the best-attended game in the history of the EHF European League Women.

The scenario: BVB had lost the reverse fixture against Siófok KC 27-24 in Hungary. That meant that despite their superior goal difference, Borussia needed to win. For the Hungarian visitors, a draw would suffice to seal pole position in the group, as they would benefit from the head-to-head record if the two teams finished level on points. Finishing as group winners would mean avoiding heavy favourites Ikast Handbold from Denmark in the quarter-finals.

The match & analysis: It was clear from the first second that the Hungarians would not be overawed by the great backdrop at the Westfalenhalle or the fact BVB had home advantage. And it was clear that it was going to be a tough game. Siófok registered two attempts at goal from seven-metres throws in the opening five minutes alone, one of which was saved by the outstanding Yara ten Holte in the BVB goal. After 10 minutes, the visitors led 4-2.

Ten Holte intervened again to turn a seven-metre throw from Dejana Milosavljevic onto the woodwork (16). At the other end, Zoe Sprengers proved to be clinical seven-metre thrower and scored an important goal to reduce the deficit to 7-5 (20).

BVB kept going and when Japanese player Haruno Sasaki levelled the scores at 9-9 and captain Alina Grijseels equalised at 10-10 with a show of energy seconds before the whistle, the Westfalenhalle went wild.

The Borussia ladies totally shook off their initial nerves after the restart. But there were some hard challenges flying in at the outset. Dana Bleckmann was roughly brought down and Sara Garovic was subjected to a hard tackle. But BVB finally had a concept to combat the defensively strong Hungarians and they were now having more success in the decisive situations. After four minutes of the second period, BVB led 13-10 thanks to goals from Meret Ossenkopp (2) and Sasaki.

Once Lena Hausherr had gotten the better of goalkeeper Rajcic with a lovely lob and Haruno Sasaki had successfully rounded off a high-tempo counter seconds later, the score stood at 18-16. The decisive spell of the match came between the 42nd and 46th minutes, when the Black & Yellows led 20-16 and pulled four goals clear for the first time.

The score stood at 25-21 as the match entered the final five minutes. The crowd at the Westfalenhalle did not let up with their support for the Borussia ladies. Once Sara Garovic had scored to make it 26-22 with two minutes to go, it was over as a contest. The hall became so loud that the referee's whistle could hardly be heard, with 26-23 the final score. The emotions ran high, with the players hugging each other for minutes and jumping around the hall. "This will remain a one-off experience in my mind. This match means a lot to me, the fans simply spurred us on," said captain Alina Grijseels, offering up a fitting summary of the occasion.

Reactions:

Henk Groener: "I knew once we had a four-goal lead in the second half that we could win, especially as we had the opposition well under control even when we were at a numerical disadvantage. We made simple errors in the first half, but the fans cheered us on nonetheless. After the break, we got our initial nerves under control."

Rupert Thiele: "I'm speechless, the atmosphere was simply overwhelming, it doesn't get better. Thanks to the fans."

BVB women's handballers: Moth, ten Holte, Kohorst; Grijseels (2), Sprengers (2), Kusian, Ossenkopp (7) Olsson (2), Sasaki (4), Rønning, Bleckmann (4), Garovic (2), Antl (2), Stens, Birk, Hausherr (1).

Outlook: The Bundesliga campaign will continue with a home game against HSG Bensheim/Auerbach on Saturday 29 February. In the quarter-finals of the European League, the Dortmund ladies will face French outfit Nantes on 18/19 and 25/26 March. As group winners, BVB will play the first leg away from home.