Motor manage first win

HC Motor Zaporozhye took advantage of Kadetten Schaffhausen's mistakes to claim a first VELUX EHF Champions League Group D victory 31:26 at home on Thursday.

VELUX EHF Champions League Group D

HC Motor Zaporozhye (UKR) v Kadetten Schaffhausen (SUI) 31:26 (18:13)

Kadetten showed flashes of brilliance but made too many technical errors to record another upset, allowing Motor to put points on the board for the first time this season.

The visitors struggled from the start, failing to find a way through Motor’s tall 6-0 defensive zone. The hosts soon set about building a lead and it was up to 10:5 by the 15th minute.

Richard Stochl was performing to his usual high standard in goal and he made 17 saves in total. This created counter-attack opportunities from which Oleg Skopintsev shone and he finished with nine goals.

The advantage was 18:13 at the halfway point with the home side converting 75 per cent of shots on goal.

The Swiss team failed to reduce the five-goal deficit for much of the second half but did provide a late scare.

Kadetten pulled back within three goals at 27:24 with just five minutes remaining, following a sequence of four unanswered goals.

This brought back memories of recent failures for Motor. However, Sergiy Onufryienko, who scored nine goals in total, and Stochl came up with big plays in the key moments to ensure there would be no dramatic turnaround. 

Andrija Pendic led Kadetten’s challenge with six goals, but the standout statistic was the visitors’ 32 technical errors.