Having a pair of brothers playing for the same team at the IHF Men’s World Championship is nothing new. It happened plenty of times, but few have been so influential for a team like the Gebala brothers are for Poland.

The Polish team are back at the men’s flagship event after a four-year wait and the makeover of the roster has been impressive, with a huge shift from the golden years, in which the team claimed a silver and two bronze medals between 2007 and 2015.

Sure, Poland, who will co-host the 28th IHF Men’s World Championship with Sweden in 2023, have worried but they had a unique approach.

They came to Egypt with strong, tall, physical players, with the roster being stuffed with seven players over 2.00m tall.

Two of them are the Gebala brothers, with left back Tomasz being the tallest player in the competition at 2.12m, while line player Maciej is only 12 centimeters shorter.

With their sheer physicality and good handball brains, Maciej and Tomasz are the anchors in the Polish defence that lifted Patryk Rombel’s side to a win against Tunisia, 30:28, in the first game at Egypt 2021.

“It is very important for us to play defence together, we have a special understanding, because we know each other very well and we practically started handball together,” said Maciej Gebala.

Both of them have also been part of the Polish roster which finished 17th at France 2017, with a combined tally of 25 goals scored in the competition.

“It was always our dream to come here and play for Poland in such important tournaments, because no player which takes up this sport cannot say he does not dream for it. So, for us to be here, it is a huge honour,” added Maciej Gebala.

The two Poles plied their trade together until 2018, when younger older brother Maciej left for the German Bundesliga, where he is now playing for SC DHfK Leipzig. Tomasz stayed at Wisla Plock, only to move to Polish powerhouse Lomza Vive Kielce in 2019.

Basically, being together for so long, means a crucial connection has been developed, with the two brothers shifting their responsibilities just by looking at each other.

“The funny thing is that when we were little, I was the line player, while Maciej was the left back. But my growing spurt meant that we had to change positions between us. It worked out just fine for us,” laughed Tomasz, a commanding presence on the court.

Probably the toughest moment as brothers for Maciej and Tomasz was a friendly game in August, when Maciej’s Leipzig faced Tomasz’s Kielce.

“Actually, it was a nice moment, because I was motivated to win and what other better incentive to win than against your brother, right?” joked Maciej. Eventually, Kielce won 32:29.

“It brought back memories since we were kids and we were playing tricks on each other. Right now, there are no more tricks, we are sharing a room together at Egypt 2021 and it is a very nice feeling, because we can stay together and catch up, as we do not play together anymore in the same team,” added Tomasz Gebala.

Focusing on the competition is the mantra and the task at hand now for the Gebala brothers is Egypt 2021, with Poland’s success vitally backed by their assignments in defence.

Poland are hungry to get back to the top and, despite the difficulty of the challenge, they look well prepared and set for a big push in the competition.

“The dream? The objective? Of course, to play the final. Poland have been there before, so we must not be afraid of the next challenges,” concluded Tomasz.

After their 30:28 win against Tunisia on Friday, a new challenge awaits, with reigning European champions Spain facing a must-win game against Poland on Sunday.

Provided they progress to the main round, tough games against Germany and Hungary will come and Poland can really see how far the big project of rebuilding the national team has gone.

Of course, Egypt 2021 could just be an intermediary stop for the Polish side, with their sights firmly set for the World Championship they will co-host the competition alongside Sweden.

“It will be crazy. Poland is a big handball nation and the fans will be very delighted to see us play in front of them, so we need to get better and better,” concluded Maciej.

Photos: Egypt 2021