Second day of Women’s 19 EHF EURO and decisions made

Day two in Celje, Slovenia, saw decisions made in all four groups as the Women’s 19 EHF EURO rests today ahead of the final preliminary round tomorrow (Sunday 30 July).

The full playing schedule can be found HERE and all games are free and live on ehfTV.com.

Group A
Hungary made it two wins out of two to sit at the top of the group and look forward to the Main Round after they beat Netherlands 34:26 (18:14). Katrin Klujber and Greta Marton proved to be the deadly duo for the Hungarians, scoring eight goals each, while Merel Freriks’ seven strikes were not enough for Netherlands. Mariel Beugels (Netherlands) and Klujber were voted best players of the match.

Romania put the disappointment of losing to Hungary yesterday behind them as they beat Sweden 26:23 (11:13). Sonia Maria Tirca, with eight goals in the match for Romania, is now the tournament top scorer with 15.

“It was a tough match, but only because we lacked passion and energy at the beginning,” said Ion Craciun, Romania’s head coach. “I hope that we will change this attitude in the following matches.”

Group B
Russia coach Viacheslav Kirilenko did not use any team time outs in the game such was the ease to which his side, led by EHF Rising Star Antonia Skorobogatchenko (six goals in the match and best player for Russia), dominated the Macedonians to win 42:15 (20:9). making it two wins from two and meaning they can now look forward to the Main Round.

Croatia and Norway battled hard in their match but Norway came away with a 25:20 (13:12) win to set up an interesting last matchday in the group, with both teams on two points.

“We lost the match as a result of poor offensive play,” said Ivan Jerković, Croatia’s head coach. “We were struggling to create scoring opportunities, and even when we managed to get them, our shot percentage was low - we tried attacking with taller players, but all our shots were blocked.”

Group C
Serbia suffered a 34:18 (15:11) defeat against Spain to leave them without points and consign them to the placement round. Eight strikes from Spain’s Ana Gonzalez Sanchez ensured a comfortable win.

“We will deservedly fight in the placement round for the positions 9 to 16,” said Dušan Savić, Serbia’s head coach. “I would like congratulate Spain on their play and tactics used against our tired girls who were still thinking about the match against France.”

Roxanne Frank in the French goal was the star of the team as the young goalkeeper saved a Julia Maidhof shot with just seven seconds of the match remaining, securing a 24:23 win for her French side, who had been in the lead for the whole match.

German coach Marielle Bohm had taken a time-out with 18 seconds to go to prepare for the final attack but her side could not find a way through. Jannela Blonbou top-scored on six for the French.

"It is great to start the tournament with two wins, but we are not playing well,” said Eric Baradat, France’s head coach. “I hope that we can improve our defensive and offensive play in the following matches. Our girls have the necessary knowledge, but they do not show it in matches. If we want to win one of the medals, we will have to show our knowledge on the court.”

Group D
Denmark eased past Montenegro 26:18 (14:10) in a match where Kristina Joergensen’s seven strikes made her the top-scorer and grabbed her the best player award for her side.

The Danes will face a host nation desperate for a win in their final game after Slovenia beat Portugal 28:18 (15:10). In front of a crowd of 500, six goals from Patricia Akalovic and Anika Strnad ensured a victory for the Slovenians, of whom Hana Vucko was voted best player.

“We are very pleased with this win after losing on Thursday,” said Bojan Voglar, Slovenia’s head coach. “We certainly expected more from the first match, so I would like to congratulate the girls on winning today because they were very disappointed. They played a good match and controlled it from the first minute to the last, increasing its pace.”

The full playing schedule can be found HERE and all games are free and live on ehfTV.com.

Photos: Slavko Kolar/Jurij Kodrun/Slovenia 2017