Machine-translated from Hungarian.
The surname Odnoga is no stranger in the county town. Their grandfather was respected in many households in Győr as a conscientious gas fitter. Of his children, Ottó and Róbert excelled in wrestling. Lotti, representing the third generation, has just taken part in the World Championships with the women’s ice hockey team, whilst her older brother, Mátyás, is the first in the family to reach international level: we spoke to him about sport, his career and life.
– How would you describe Mátyás Odnoga, who turns twenty-eight in May?
– Following a successful career as a professional sportsman and inspired by his parents’ example, the young man began working in the hospitality industry and has been running a burger restaurant in the city centre for the past six months. Alongside this, he remains committed to his chosen sport as a registered ice-hockey player for UNI GYŐR ETO HC in the Andersen League, which is considered the second tier. He is also the team’s assistant coach, having gained several years’ experience as a youth coach.
– A youthful face, of average build: how did this forward, with his rugged appearance, end up playing against such tough-looking defenders?
– It all started with just skating for fun, then József Bartalis somehow spotted me and invited me to training. That’s where it all began, when I was six years old. I grew to love ice hockey, made friends on the rink, and later came the sense of achievement; I progressed step by step.
– Could you give us some details on this?
– At the age of fourteen, I joined the youth team at Érsekújvár in Slovakia, then played for MTK in Budapest, before moving to Innsbruck. The Tyrolean capital was the setting for my first major success, winning the silver medal in the Austrian youth league. I returned home due to the foreign player rules in force there at the time, and played for three years in Debrecen. That’s where I made my first-division debut, in what was then known as the MOL Liga. Next came the Dunaújvárosi Acélbikák, marking the most successful period of my career to date; I won the Golden Helmet award once as the highest-scoring domestic player. With MAC Újbuda, I got a taste of the atmosphere of the top tier of the Slovak ice hockey league, before spending a year in Újpest. Next came Vasas; as a result of the merger between the Budapest and Győr teams, in the autumn of 2021 – twelve years later – I once again became a ‘Győr ice hockey player’…
– You’ve been to quite a few places. What would you do differently today?
– I always tried to perform at the highest level, but it was often difficult to cope with the feeling that nowhere was I regarded as a local player. However, I can be proud of the year I spent playing for MAC; looking back now, I’d try to extend that period to match the standard in Slovakia. Looking back, I feel that perhaps I shouldn’t have aspired to much more than the domestic league, and it’s true that there were times when I got a bit caught up in life in the capital…
– What are the qualities that have taken him all the way to the national team?
– I was regarded as a skilful, quick-footed centre, and my game certainly wasn’t lacking in intelligence either. I was never one to shy away from a bit of physicality, and apart from the last two years, I managed to avoid any serious injuries. I wasn’t really given much of a chance at youth level, but when I was given the opportunity to play with the seniors, I tried to make the most of it; I scored a goal in my second international match. I was selected for the national team six times in total; I’m really sorry that I wasn’t able to play my part in Hungarian ice hockey’s greatest successes.
– What are your plans for the future?
– A stable family life and a business help me achieve my goal, in which ice hockey will always remain my lifelong passion. I would like to help bring Győr hockey back to the very top. At the moment I’m still a player, but I’ve already had a taste of the considerable responsibility that comes with coaching, and I’m ready to take on this new challenge.
KA: Mátyás Odnoga is once again playing for Győr in green and white, this time in the second division.