17.04.2015, 06:40
Stord and Odorhei trying to hamper all-Portuguese final

ROUND PREVIEW: Seven goal deficit does not make Stord's coach Jesper Holm surrender before the return match.

Stord and Odorhei trying to hamper all-Portuguese final

Even though Stord Handball lost the first leg of the Challenge Cup semi-final by 25:18 against Liberty Seguros ABC/UMinho, the Norwegian club's coach Jesper Holm still believes in the chance to qualify for the final.

"In the first match, Liberty scored 13 out of their 25 goals on counter attacks or fast breaks. If we can limit that number considerably, we will have a good chance.

"This time, our opponents will be the ones who have a 18-20 hours-journey behind them,  so maybe they will be tired.

"Finally, they play a high-risk handball, and maybe we can benefit from that too," Jesper Holm tells eurohandball.com ahead of the second leg in the Stord Sportsenter on Sunday at 18:00 hrs local time.

The coming weekend might become a great one for Portuguese handball, though. Not only do Liberty Segundo have a great chance to reach the final.

So does the other Portuguese team in the semi-finals, as SL Benfica are only two goals down before their home game against Handball club Odorhei.

31:29 in favour of the Romanian team was the result of the first match in Romania last weekend. This narrow difference gives Benfica a good chance to proceed to the final - and maybe make it an entirely Portuguese affair.

Odorhei's endeavours to hold on to their lead are starting at 19:15 local time on Sunday in Lisbon.

TEXT: Peter Bruun / me