Kielce maintain perfect streak in Aalborg

KS Vive Tauron Kielce’s overall quality shone through in the finish of an entertaining match against an Aalborg side that gave the visitors more trouble than expected on Sunday. 

Aalborg Handball came close to pulling off a surprise victory, but made crucial errors when it mattered the most. 

MOL-Pick Szeged came out on top in a tight, low-scoring game against Dunkerque HB Grand Littoral on Sunday, justifying their role as favourites ahead of the match. Dunkerque once again faltered in the crucial moments, keeping them at the bottom of Group D alongside HC Motor Zaporozhye.

GROUP D

Aalborg Handball (DEN) vs KS Vive Tauron Kielce (POL) 25:27 (12:13)

The Polish team surprised the hosts early on with a deep 5-1 defensive system that saw Kielce take the lead quickly. Only Aalborg left back Emil Berggren managed to find some space and kept the margin at an acceptable level with his five goals in the first half (7 total). 

Kielce went four goals ahead a few times during the match, but the feisty Danes always managed to narrow the gap somehow. 

The key moment came in the 52nd minute, when Aalborg were again gaining momentum. At that point, Berggren received a two minute suspension and Kielce widened the margin to 25:22 five minutes from time.

Aalborg’s coach Jesper Jensen gambled and introduced a seventh outfield player, but his men quickly lost the ball and Ivan Cupic sent it into an empty net from his six metre line. 

With a four-goal advantage Kielce managed to hold on to seal the victory with no particular hassle, so the Danish supporters will have to continue waiting for their first home celebration of the season. 

Ole Erevik had a strong evening in Aalborg’s goal with seven and eight saves in each half respectively. Krzysztof Lijewski scored six goals for Kielce, who remain unbeaten so far this season in all competitions. 

MOL-Pick Szeged (HUN) v Dunkerque HB Grand Littoral (FRA) 23:21 (11:10)

The Hungarian squad started with a 5-1 defensive zone that quickly began to cause problems for Dunkerque’s attack. A seven-minute dry spell for the visitors saw them fall three goals behind (7:4) early on. 

But it was soon evident that Szeged were missing playmaker Dean Bombac and as a result did not have quite enough bite in attack either. Despite being injured, the Slovenian was quickly brought on in the hope of stepping up the home side’s attack, but his presence was not enough. 

Dunkerque were spurred by the majestic performance of their goalkeeper Vincent Gerard (17 saves total). The guests were three goals down in the 40th minute, but managed to create a two-goal advantage by the 46th (18:20). 

After a home timeout, Szeged coach Juan Carlos Pastor reintroduced both Bombac and the 5-1 defensive system. Szeged managed a 3:0 run and were up 21:20 with seven minutes to go.

Dunkerque's imagination in attack went missing in that crucial period, and when Jose Manuel Sierra Mendez (10 saves total) kept out a penalty shot that would have, if scored, brought the visitors to a single goal deficit, the home crowd were ready to celebrate another Szeged win. 

Sunday’s results put the Hungarian team firmly in second place in Group D.

Baptiste Butto was the best goal scorer for Dunkerque with nine goals. Zsolt Balogh netted seven for Szeged.