Not only did Bengt Johansson “teach” an entire generation of Swedish handball coaches.
He was also of crucial importance to the captain of the national football team, Jan Andersson.
– He told Sportbladet, Bengt has more than influenced me to drive.
The Benjan Boys were not only one of the best national handball teams in the world ever.
From this national team, the majority of the players have also become successful players and leaders in handball and many have told them of the great importance of Bent Johansson and his leadership to them.
But Benjan not only influenced Swedish handball forever.
– Bengt is more of an influence on my driving, he says Jan Anderson.
“very sad”
The captain of the national football team received the news of Johansson’s departure from Sportbildet on Monday morning.
– It feels so sad. I knew he was sick and the last time I was home in Halmstad a month ago I met a man who said things were going wrong now, Jan says and continues:
Bengt worked as a gymnastics teacher in high school at home in Halmstad and lived hundreds of meters away when I was growing up. I had early plans to become a gym teacher and set an example as a teacher. When I got my internship in high school, I did it with him at Hallägraskolan.
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As a leader, you have to find your way forward. I think this is important. Then you get an impression from different people, and you show he has more than influenced my leadership, both as a teacher and then when I followed Drut closely for many years when he was a coach there.
The last contact was this summer.
– I sent my congratulations to him in June of last year when we were at the European Championships and he turned one year old.
Janne summarizes:
– Great leader.
What made him great as a leader?
– As a teacher, he was very calm, sane and confident in what he did. Tactically, he actually pioneered Drott with combos, never forgetting the cucumber pitcher and counter handball. I’m not saying he invented it but it came at his time and the national team was a success in that match.
But his leadership was great above all else. The security he had there and how he got the players involved. I took this with me. They are said to have a strong foundation to stand on, but it is the players on the pitch who decide the matches and so they must have a big involvement. “I’ve listened to my players a lot over the years,” Anderson says.
