Motor win delivers a four-way tie before the last round
A flawless second half saw Motor Zaporozhye ease past Aalborg Handball, in this do-or-die match of the round.
With a mere 60 minutes to play, four teams are tied in Group D with six points with only two of them being guaranteed passage to the next round.
VELUX EHF Champions League Group D
Aalborg Handball (DEN) vs HC Motor Zaporozhye (UKR) 30:36 (16:16)
The Ukrainian champions were in a must-win situation against Aalborg Handball if they were to repeat last year’s achievement of making it to the Last 16.
And they made the most of it, with a thrilling display, albeit a turnover-cluttered one, earning a hard-fought two points at the expense of the Danes.
Sergii Burka was the team’s top scorer with nine goals and Zaporozhye owed their great start to their Slovak goalkeeper Richard Stochl.
The 39-year-old veteran made seven remarkable saves in the first 11 minutes, while the Ukrainian champions took control of the game, scoring with ease past the Danish defence.
However, neither of the two sides managed to clear a two-goal lead as the first half ended in a stalemate (16:16).
But Aalborg lost control of the game in the first ten minutes of the second half.
A 6:2 run engineered by the guests in only eight minutes saw the Ukrainian champions go up with a five-goal advantage (25:20) in the 40th minute.
With almost 4,000 fans behind them, the Danes tried to swing the momentum back in their favour.
With three consecutive goals, Aalborg’s veteran left wing Harald Tvetden took the Danish side to a one-goal deficit (29:30) as a good result seemed to be within their grasp.
But the Danes’ nerves got the better of them.
Several wasted possessions later, Motor cruised to a 36:30 win, thanks to Stetsyura’s prowess in front of Aalborg’s goalposts.
This result leaves the situation in Group D on a knif edge. With only one game to play, Aalborg Handball, Dunkerque, Kadetten Schaffhausen and Motor are all tied on six points and only two teams will join Kielce and Szeged in the Last 16.
TEXT: Adrian Costeiu / bc
|
