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Russia, Sweden, and Hungary have already secured their places in the main round of the Women’s 19 EHF EURO 2021 in Celje, Slovenia after two match days in the preliminary round.
Russia defeated Slovakia 35:27 on Friday in the three-team group B, a day after Sweden had also beaten the Slovakian team. The direct duel between Russia and Sweden on Sunday will determine who win the group and how many points each team will carry into the main round.
Hungary, the 2019 champions, lived up to their billing as one of the tournament favourites with a clear 33:20 win over Czech Republic to lock up top spot in group D. The Czechs, however, are still in with a chance but will need a win over Romania in the last group match on Sunday.
There is no decision yet in group A, where Germany, Switzerland and Denmark could all finish on four points, with hosts Slovenia on zero points after two rounds.
Also, no team from group C has officially qualified for the main round yet due to the outstanding result of Thursday’s match between Austria and Croatia, which will be played to a finish later Saturday.
After a rest day, play at the W19 EHF EURO 2021 resumes on Sunday with the last matches of the preliminary round. All matches are streamed live on EHFTV.
GROUP A
Switzerland vs Denmark 26:23 (11:11)
- Switzerland failed to score for the first five minutes and found themselves 3:0 behind but had turned the tide nine minutes later when Celia Heinzer gave them a 7:6 lead
- neither team led by more than two goals after the break until the 54th minute (22:22), when Switzerland started a decisive 4:0 run
- Heinzer scored eight goals in total for Switzerland, Thea Rasmussen was Denmark’s best shooter with six
Slovenia vs Germany 24:29 (14:16)
- Slovenia had the better start and still led by two goals (7:5) after 12 minutes, but then a 5:0 run by Germany turned the match around
- the hosts reduced a four-goal deficit to just two at the break (16:14), but could not keep the pressure on Germany, who earned their second straight win
- Germany’s Naomi Conze scored four times in the opening quarter and finished the match with a total of nine goals
GROUP B
Slovakia vs Russia 27:35 (9:18)
- Slovakia enjoyed an early 2:1 lead but were never in front again during the rest of the match
- a 6:0 run between minutes 19 and 28 gave Russia a decisive 10-goal lead (17:7) already in the first half
- Anastasiia Alekseeva and Kseniia Zakordonskaia both netted six times for Russia, while Barbora Lancz led with eight for Slovakia
GROUP C
Croatia vs France 14:24 (6:13)
- Croatia led 4:1 after six minutes but scored just two more goals in the remaining 24 minutes of the first half
- France overcame their early scare of dropping three goals behind, outscoring their opponents 12:2 to lead by seven goals at the break on their way to a second straight win
- eight different players from Croatia and 10 from France made it onto the score sheet, but no one netted more than four times
Montenegro vs Austria 35:20 (18:7)
- Montenegro were off to a flying start when they went 9:2 ahead in the opening 11 minutes
- their advantage over Austria already reached double-digit figures for the first time in the 21st minute when Ana Radovic netted for 15:5
- leading by 11 at the break, the win was never in danger for Montenegro, who saw Katarina Dzaferovic score seven times and Gordana Marsenic and Mina Novovic six each
GROUP D
Czech Republic vs Hungary 20:33 (8:15)
- coming off a win over Norway, the Czechs quickly opened the scoring thanks to Marie Poláková, but the team would not be ahead again in the remaining 59 minutes
- Hungary soon gained control and led already by four goals after nine minutes (7:3) and by a commanding seven at the break (15:8)
- Hungary’s Petra Koronczai became the leading scorer with eight goals, having netted four times in each half
Romania vs Norway 36:22 (20:6)
- Oana Bors scored four times in the first 17 minutes when Romania opened a decisive 12:2 lead, and the team’s advantage was already 14 goals at half-time
- the second half was a more balanced affair as the difference remained 14 at the final buzzer, with Romania’s Alicia Gogirla scoring a leading eight times
- Romania will need at least a draw against Czech Republic on Sunday to join group winners Hungary into the main round
TEXT: EHF / Eric Willemsen
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