15.08.2021, 10:00
Poland defeat hosts in high-scoring final in Skopje

FINAL REVIEW: Poland beat hosts North Macedonia in an exciting M19 EHF Championship final in North Macedonia

Poland denied North Macedonia the opportunity to claim a Men's 19 EHF Championship title on home court in Skopje. Poland beat the hosts 35:33 in a final that had no shortage of action from start to finish. 

A similar number of goals were scored in the bronze medal match. Bosnia and Herzegovina had the upper hand towards the end of the first half, but Switzerland used what they had left in the tank to win by a solitary goal, 31:30.  

FINAL
Poland vs North Macedonia 35:33 (17:17)

• although Poland's winning margin was only two goals, they led by six goals (32:26) in the 55th minute
• Pawel Krawczyk (Poland) and Marko Mitev (North Macedonia) both scored seven times
• Poland's higher shot efficiency of 70 per cent made the difference in a high-scoring final 

Poland deny North Macedonia home title

When Poland met North Macedonia in group A of the preliminary round on Thursday, the hosts earned a valuable 30:25 win. A repeat on Sunday would have been special for North Macedonia's players, but a polished attacking performance from Poland denied the hosts victory in the final.

With three players scoring six goals or more for Poland – Pawel Krawczyk, Dawid Molski and Jakub  Bedzikowski – North Macedonia could not stop their opponents often enough. For Poland, who recorded a shot efficiency of more than 70 per cent in both halves, victory was assured when Molski's goal in the 55th minute gave them a 32:26 lead. 

BRONZE MEDAL MATCH
Bosnia and Herzegovina vs Switzerland 30:31 (19:18)

• Switzerland trailed 19:16 in the first half but fought back to earn a narrow win and claim third place in North Macedonia
• Noam Lepold netted nine times for Switzerland. Gian Attenhofer and Robin Henis (both six goals) also made significant scoring contributions 
• two players scored six goals for Bosnia and Herzegovina: Berin Keso and Ivano Pavlovic

Switzerland win bronze battle 

Having won three matches from three played in group B, Switzerland's ambition was to play in the final on Sunday in Skopje. However, after a narrow loss against North Macedonia on Friday evening, they met Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sunday's bronze medal match.

Switzerland's loss against North Macedonia featured a total of 67 goals scored, and the bronze medal match against Bosnia and Herzegovina also had more than 60 goals. On this occasion, Switzerland came out on the right side of a high-scoring match that was only decided by one goal, despite the team incurring 11 two-minute suspensions. 

Other results

Placement matches 5-7
Ukraine vs Greece 22:27 (11:11)

Final rankings
1st Poland
2nd North Macedonia
3rd Switzerland
4th Bosnia and Herzegovina 
5th Greece
6th Ukraine
7th Georgia

All-star Team

Goalkeeper: Jakub Alaj (POL)

Left wing: Petar Atanasijevikj (MKD)

Left back: Kotsionis Konstantinos (GRE)

Centre back: Marko Mitev (MKD)

Line player: Joel Willecke (SUI)

Right back: Berin Keso (BIH)

Right wing: Filip Michalowicz (POL)

Top scorer: Ivano Pavlovic (BIH) - 35 goals 

Defender: Joel Willecke (SUI)

MVP: Marko Mitev (MKD)

TEXT: Jamie Whittington