28.04.2021, 06:40
Second-half comeback sees Macedonians take fourth win

GROUP 7 REVIEW: North Macedonia came from behind at half-time to secure an impressive 27:22 win over Finland

North Macedonia continued an impressive run through the EHF EURO 2022 qualifiers on Wednesday night, taking their fourth win in five matches as they defeated Finland 27:22 away.

Although the Macedonians moved up to eight points with the victory, they are not safely through to the final tournament yet. However, if Denmark win their match against Switzerland later on Wednesday night, they will book both their and North Macedonia’s tickets to Hungary and Slovakia.

GROUP 7
Finland vs North Macedonia 22:27 (14:12)

• Finland created a narrow lead towards the end of the first half before North Macedonia turned the tables, taking the lead for the first time since the first quarter of the match at 20:19 with 10 minutes remaining
• a huge game from Patrik Roslander in Finland’s goal caused big trouble for North Macedonia — particularly in the first half — as the keeper recorded 22 saves at 45 per cent
• although North Macedonia took the advantage as the buzzer loomed, the match was still open until Goce Georgievski struck for 25:21 in the 57th minute
• for Finland, it was the fifth straight loss in the qualifiers, while North Macedonia are a strong contender to reach the final tournament
• North Macedonia will finish their qualifiers campaign in a potentially decisive match against Switzerland on Sunday in Skopje, while Finland will meet Denmark in Aarhus

A tight race at the top

With their win against Finland, North Macedonia moved up to eight points on the table, where they temporarily sit two points in front of Denmark and four ahead of Switzerland.

If Denmark beat Switzerland in their game on Wednesday night, they will join North Macedonia on eight points and the two sides will secure the group 7 tickets to the EHF EURO 2022. If Switzerland defeat Denmark, North Macedonia will face a final on Sunday when they meet Andy Schmid & Co.

TEXT: EHF / Courtney Gahan