#25 Žiga Strgar will be defending our pond in 2022
GH: Last season, you were the first flag puller on the team. How satisfied are you with your progress in the 2021 season?
The progress in the 2021 season was more than obvious, especially in my opinion. I was known for my ability to read the game/attack. Which allowed me to get some crucial pulls or even take away some yards of attack. My better physical fitness and no injuries throughout the season also encouraged the numbers.
GH: Although we support the development of foreigners in our team in our club, you are one of the few who is a foreigner in a foreign team. You have moved to Germany exactly to Berlin; how will you take care of your readiness for the new season?
Berlin as a city itself offers enormous opportunities for sports and recreation. The infrastructure itself is at a much higher level than in Slovenia, maybe even at a professional level. However, as a state (and city), much stricter laws have been passed to prevent COVID infections, so by March, it was necessary to wear FFP-2 masks in gyms and various sports facilities and be tested regularly. Training outside in the wind and cold is more than inhumane, haha. So we'll see what April and the spring months bring.
GH: You are several thousand kilometres away from Ljubljana; how will you overcome these obstacles so that you can help develop the team and upgrade your games?
Fortunately, my employer gives me some flexibility when working from abroad, so I will use this quota and stay in Slovenia for about 14 days and play two tournaments before I return. But I probably won't be present at all the tournaments and matches.
GH: What are your impressions after two seasons, what are you proud of, and what would you change?
There are a lot of impressions, new friendships have been created, new experiences in life and after everything we have experienced together as a club and individuals, we can all be proud. For me, memorable moments are what we as an organization have enabled individuals, victory against our rivals, the Badgers, always great matches against the Hogs and the 2021 season (regular season).
It's not exactly a change, but I would describe it as a criticism that we are not quite up to the "big" or important matches. I'm talking about what happened in the playoff finale of the 2021 season.
GH: The German national team qualified for the World Games in 2022. How do you see the difference between German flag football and Slovenian flag football? Will you be playing on both poles this season?
Despite the size of the city (Berlin), I think that the flag is still a lot for Slovenia, so I believe that Slovenia and the Slovenian league are ahead of the German one. The size of Slovenia itself encourages a lot, because, say, the closest club to me in Berlin is still 1 hour away by public transport. However, I would like to highlight the infrastructure, which is much more in favour of classic football, but we can still share this infrastructure. This is unreasonably better than in our "home". Of course, I will try to play on both sides and bring some more experience to our club.
