Brest grab historic win at Sävehof

After obtaining their very first point in the Women’s EHF Champions League last week against Rostov-Don, Brest Bretagne Handball went a step further by claiming their maiden victory at this level, 39:27 at Sävehof.

• Brest’s 39-goal haul is the French side’s highest score at this level
• Sävehof suffered third straight defeat and are in danger of being eliminated
• Ana Gros and Marta Mangue scored eight goals for Brest; Elin Hallagard netted five times for Sävehof

GROUP B
IK Sävehof (SWE) vs Brest Bretagne Handball (FRA) 27:39 (16:19)

During their maiden campaign last season, Brest had lost all six games in the continental top flight and did not score more than 24 goals in a match. However, things have clearly changed for the bolstered French squad and Sunday’s result proves it.

In every match this season, they set a new scoring record – 28 goals against Kobenhavn, 29 against Rostov and 39 against Sävehof, thanks to a brilliant attacking performance in Partille.

The visitors netted 19 times before the break and the writing was on the wall early on as just five minutes into the game, home coach Rasmus Overby took his first timeout, down 4:1.

Isabella Mouratidou’s saves helped the home side to turn the tide and draw level at 6:6, but Brest enjoyed a 4:0 run to pull clear again and went on to lead by three goals at half-time.

A large part of the second half saw a balanced game, which gave the Swedish champions some hope for a comeback. However, another Brest scoring spree settled the game as a contest with 10 minutes left to play.

In two weeks’ time, the rivals will meet again in Brest, and a victory will see the French side securing their spot in the next round.