Stout defence drives Buducnost to win in Sävehof

Having the defence with the least amount of goals allowed in the competition can certainly be an advantage when playing the youngest team in the competition. After a rocky start, Buducnost turned on its engines and powered to a 25:18 win against Sävehof, as the Swedish side could only find the net six times between the 16th and the 46th minute. The Montenegrin side will start the main round with seven points, while Sävehof will bring zero points to the table if they lose next Friday in Bucuresti.

GROUP D
IK Sävehof (SWE) vs Buducnost (MNE) 18:25 (11:14)

No team has managed to defeat Buducnost in the last 20 matches. But the statistics meant nothing for the young guns of IK Sävehof. The Swedish side knew they had nothing to lose against the defending title holders and enjoyed a bright start against Buducnost. The Swedish side powered to 4:1 and 6:3 leads, as Buducnost’s famous aggressive defence was missing in Partille.

With a surprisingly absent Cristina Neagu, the guests had to rely only on Katarina Bulatovic and Milena Raicevic. But the two backs did their job and Buducnost was soon back in the game, tying the score at 6.

Unexpectedly, it was a Sävehof timeout that changed the outcome of the game. With the game tied at 7, Henrik Signell tried to boost his team’s chances, but Buducnost was quicker to react. Obviously disappointed with his team’s game, Dragan Adzic called for a reconstruction of the defence, and his players responded brilliantly.

Therefore, in the next 30 minutes, Sävehof only managed to score six times, as the Montenegrin wall with Cvijic and Lazovic in the first line, blocked attempt after attempt. It was no surprise then, that Buducnost had a 14:11 advantage at halftime, while the distance kept growing in the second half. A nine-goal advantage was the maximum the guests could achieve, but Sävehof managed to limit the score, as the game ended in a 25:18 win for the title holders.

While top scorer Cristina Neagu had an off-night, with three goals from ten shots, Buducnost counted on Katarina Bulatovic and Biljana Pavicevic, who scored six and four goals respectively. Sävehof’s top scorers were Julia Eriksson and Louise Sand, with five goals apiece, but the Swedish team will have to draw their blood next Friday against a qualified team to enter the next round.

If Sävehof does not achieve a positive result against CSM Bucuresti, the Swedish side will start the main round with zero points, while Buducnost, the leaders, have already seven points from their four matches against Group D’s qualified teams.