The 2024 season of the Tirol Raiders was characterized by ups and downs. Team captain Adrian Platzgummer knows this too, but he draws a lot of motivation from a special moment.

The Raiders had their eyes firmly set on the playoffs until the final match day. However, a clear 3:30 defeat against the Munich Ravens clearly destroyed these hopes. “It was very, very disappointing, and frustrating,” remembers Platzgummer.

The 29-year-old explains: “It felt like we were never in the game, like we were passengers and just had to watch the Ravens stop us and secure their playoff spot.”

A tough defeat for the Austrians, but one that will give them new motivation. This also applies to Platzgummer, who recently extended his contract: “If you don't win the last game of the season and therefore don't become champions, you always use the last defeat as motivation.”

Victory over Surge as a major highlight of the season

Platzgummer draws further motivation from his personal highlight of the season: the 45:42 victory against the previously unbeaten Stuttgart Surge in week 12. “I think that was very important for us as a team and as an organization. It proved to us that we are on the right track. That we're doing a lot of things right.”

A strong performance, but one that Platzgummer had already expected: “It wasn't like we had the feeling that we were the clear underdogs. We already knew, after the first game against Surge, that we were close to beat them.”

He adds: “And our head coach Herrmann got very emotional after the game because it simply meant a lot to him that we believed so much in him and his path and everything. That made him very proud.”

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