High-octane 60 minutes sees Elverum narrowly defeat Dinamo

Elverum Handball were dealt a tough blow on Saturday night, as Velenje recorded a win that meant the Norwegian side were knocked out of the race for the second play-off spot in VELUX EHF Champions League Group C.

But that did not lead to Elverum playing anything less than full throttle against Dinamo, as a second-half comeback earned them the fifth win of the season on Sunday evening.

“[It was] a tough game, we were a little bit lucky. We are happy because we set the record of the club, with 10 points in Champions League. So, for us, it was a very big win,” said Elverum coach Michael Apelgren.

• Veteran Andre Lindboe has the best game of his career in Europe’s top competition, scoring 13 times for Elverum
• Left back Ciprian Sandru tallies 10 goals for Dinamo
• Elverum retain fourth place in the group, while Dinamo are last with two points

GROUP C
Dinamo Bucuresti (ROU) vs Elverum Handball (NOR) 33:34 (16:16)

Out of contention for a play-off berth, Elverum had little to play for on Sunday evening aside from their pride.

Hosts start strong

The 6:2 start for Dinamo was their best of the season and firmly put the ‘Red Dogs’ on the path to their second win of the season.

As Elverum slowly began to regain their offensive prowess, the Norwegian side decreased the gap and even managed to level the game in the final seconds of the first half, 16:16.

Elverum take control

Though Dinamo enjoyed another bright start in the second period, it was Elverum who finally claimed the two points.

Spurred by a 5:2 partial between the 38th and the 42th minute, the guests took the lead and never looked back. The 34:33 result was yet another high one between these sides, following Elverum’s 40:32 drubbing of Bucuresti in the first game.