Mighty Midtjylland overpower battling Sävehof
Danish giants FC Midtjylland spiced up Group 2 with a resounding home win over Swedish rivals IK Sävehof, with the result paving the way for an exciting main round battle as only two points separate the top five teams on the table.
The final score may suggest that FCM breezed to an emphatic defeat over IK Sävehof, but the home side were made to work hard for the precious victory that put them level on five points with fourth-placed CSM Bucuresti on group table.
With third-placed Vardar on six points, one behind second-placed Györi Audi ETO KC and front-runners Buducnost, Group 2 promises to deliver a set of gripping clashes for the knock-out stage berths, with the five-way battle poised to go down to the wire.
Group 2
FC Midtjylland (DEN) vs IK Sävehof (SWE) 25:21 (15:9)
Determined to live up to their billing of downright favourites against their Scandinavian rivals, Midtjylland raced into a 7:2 lead as Sävehof had no reply for their barrage of fast breaks.
A quick transition of the ball in set plays allowed Veronica Kristiansen to rifle in her opening three shots, while Sabine Englert pulled off several stunning saves at the other end.
Down but already out for the count, Sävehof stayed afloat with a gritty performance that prevented the home side from running riot and opening the floodgates.
The game looked over early in the second half as FCM kept their feet on the gas pedal for a 17:11 lead, but Sävehof then scored four without reply to throw the match wide open.
FCM again pulled away to a 20:15 lead, with Johanna Ahlm clinically converting seven-metre penalties and a couple of shots from open play, only for the visitors to roar back and reduce the gap to 22:20 with five minutes left on the clock.
Stine Jorgensen then showed all her might as she unleashed a pair of thunderbolts from the nine-metre line, breaking down Sävehof’s valiant resistance in Ikast.
The outstanding Ahlm led FCM with seven goals from as many shots, while Jorgensen scored five from 10. Joanna Lindvall-Haggren topped Sävehof’s scoring with five goals, with five other players scoring three each. However, the Swedish side’s left back Julia Eriksson endured a difficult afternoon, netting only three times from 12 attempts against the ironclad Midtjylland defence.
TEXT: Zoran Milosavljevic / cg
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