An elbow injury has kept Palicka out of action since the end of September.
But it didn't show when Kolstad faced German side Füchse Berlin in Trondheim. With his eyes on the European Championship squad – which will be announced on December 16 – the 39-year-old took the chance right from the start.
It feels fantastic right now. I don't feel any pain anywhere. The injury doesn't feel anything and I feel well-trained. But of course, I've practiced handball twice and played a match so you have to pedal and find those little movements and things to find top form, Palicka tells TT.
He saved four of the first eight shots, and then it all started rolling. In classic Palicka fashion, one save was more acrobatic than the next, and by the end of the game he had stopped 14 of 38 shots.
With Palicka at the helm, Kolstad also managed to defeat the reigning German champions 28–24 and took two important points in the hunt for a place in the Champions League playoffs.
Such a performance was not expected. And then a win against Berlin, even though they have injury concerns – but so do we. We should basically be proud of this victory, says Palicka.
