After the third day of the Champions League Qualification Round 1, it is more or less clear which teams will advance to the second round.
Montpellier upset host Savona in the most exciting game of the day of Group A (10:9), but both teams mathematically secured their spots in the second round. They are joined by Terrassa and Primorac. The remaining two teams Vitoria and Warsaw had no chances to reach the second round. Terrassa and Montpellier are unbeaten and they lead the race in this group.
Two important games were played in Group B in Podgorica today. Jadran Herceg Novi recorded a crucial 12:6 victory over Sintez Kazan and qualified for the 2nd round. OSC Budapest continued its winning streak by downing Jadran Split in the derby, and advanced to the next phase. If there are no surprises in the next three rounds, Jadran Split and Apollon Smyrnis will qualify from this group along with OSC and Jadran HN
Day 3, results
Group A – Round 2: Montpellier – Vitoria 17:9, Terrassa – Primorac 11:8, Savona – AZSC UW Warsaw 29:4. Round 3: Primorac – Vitoria 18:6, AZS UW Warsaw – Terrassa 5:26 Savona – Montpellier 9:10
Group B: Apollon – Zaibas 21:6, Jadran HN – Sintez 12:6, OSC Budapest – Jadran S 14:9
OSC is the only team that has a perfect record after three days. The Hungarians recorded three wins
Champions League, Qualification Round 1, Day 3
Group A (Savona)
Round 2
Montpellier – Vitoria 17:9 (5:2, 5:1, 5:2, 2:4)
Montpellier: Ivankovic 3, Alfonso Pozo 3, Piot 2, D.Zivkovic 2, Spillaert 2, I. Zivkovic 1, Kalinic 1, Vilcot 1.
Vitoria: Sousa 5, Ramos 2, Lopes 1, Pereira 1.
Montpellier opened the second day at the tournament in Savona beating underdog Vitoria.
Terrassa – Primorac 11:8 (2:3, 4:2, 4:1, 1:2)
Terrassa: Barroso 3, Flores 3, Alarcon 2, Alegre 1, Gutierrez 1, De Lera 1.
Primorac: Draskovic 2, Stanojevic 2, Janovic 1, MAcic 1, Bastrica 1, Matkovic 1.
The derby of the morning session was an encounter between Terrassa and Primorac. The Spaniards took an early 2:0 lead, but Primorac went in front before the first break (3:2). Terrassa regained a lead in the second period and opened the third quarter excellently. The Spaniards scored two goals in their first two possessions in the second half to earn an 8:5 advantage and kept the distance until the end.
Savona – AZSC UW Warsaw 29:4 (7:0, 10:1, 8:3, 4:0)
Savona: Fondelli 6, Bruni 4, Rizzo 3, Campopiano 3, Iocchi Gratta 3, Giovanetti 3, Patchaliev 2, Vuskovic 2, Rocchi 1, Molina 1, Caldieri 1.
AZSC UW Warsaw: Moore 1, Madej 1, Kalata 1, Maciejewski 1.
Savona had a 17:0 advantage before the Poles scored their first goal. But, the hosts didn’t slow until the end, because a goal difference might be decisive for the final standings.
Round 3
Primorac – Vitoria 18:6 (3:2, 5:1, 6:2, 4:1)
Primorac: Matkovic 4, Macic 3, Bastrica 3, Stanojevic 2, Draskovic 1, Paunovic 1, Vukasovic 1, Sekaric 1, Vuksic 1, Janovic 1.
Vitoria Guimaraes : Sousa 3, Ramos 2, Sobetchi 1.
Primorac started slowly. In the middle of the second period, the Montenegrins had a 4:3 lead. But, they found their rhythm, scored eight unanswered goals for a 12:3 advantage, and secured the victory.
AZS UW Warsaw – Terrassa 5:26 (1:8, 2:5, 2:8, 0:5)
Warsaw: Kalata 2, Maciejewski 2, Chupryina 1.
Terrassa: Barroso 7, Gutierrez 5, Rodriguez 4, Chico 4, Alegre 3, Garcia 2, Prieto 1.
Terrassa collected three points, as planned, and earned a ticket for the second round.
Savona – Montpellier 9:10 (2:3, 2:1, 4:2, 1:4)
Savona:Bruni 3, Campopiano 2, Iocchi Gratta 2, Rocchi 1, Rizzo 1.
Montpellier: D. Zivkovic 3, Kalinic 2, Ivankovic 2, Mustur 2, Alfonso Pozo 1.
The last match of Day 2 in Savona saw 19 goals and even 33 exclusions (the hosts committed 17 personal fouls, and the French were excluded 16 times). There were only three action goals in the match (Savona scored two and Montpellier one).
The game was a neck-and-neck race until 6:6. Montpellier gained a one-goal lead six times, but Savona leveled the score on each occasion. The hosts netted two action goals in the last two minutes of the third quarter for 8:6. Rizzo streched the margin to three (9:6) in the 27th minute. But, Montpellier was able to come back just like in the game against Terrassa yesterday. On Day 1, Montpellier trailed 9:12 two minutes before the end, but it secured a point (12:12). The French did an even better job today. They came back from three goals down and recorded a win. Montpellier scored four consecutive goals in three and a half minutes (each of the four was a goal from an extra player shot). Duje Zivkovic netted for 10:9 with 01:21 to go, and Montpellier kept a minimal lead in the remaining time.
1 Terrassa (ESP) 3 – 7 (+24)
2 Montpellier (FRA) 3 – 7 (+9)
3 Savona (ITA) 3 – 6 (+44)
4 Primorac (MNE) 3 – 6 (+27)
5 Vitoria Guimaraes (POR) 3 – 0 (-40)
6 AZS UW Warsaw (POL) 3 – 0 (-64)
Group B (Podgorica), Round 4
Apollon – Zaibas 21:6 (7:1, 6:1, 4:2, 4:2)
Apollon Smyrnis: Gounas 5, Solanakis 4, Kotskar 3, Goniotakis 3, Gardikas 2, Chondrokoukis 2, Alamanos 1, Tsolakoudis 1.
EVK Zaibas: Gostautas 3, Jonkus 2, Ivovic 1.
All photos by PVK Jadran Herceg Novi
Apollon Smyrnis recovered from a very bad 2nd competition day (they suffered losses to OSC and Jadran Split yesterday) and easily beat Zaibas which will probably finish the tournament in 7th place.
Jadran HN – Sintez 12:6 (3:1, 3:4, 3:1, 3:0)
Jadran Herceg Novi: Petkovic 3, Da.Radovic 2, V.Radovic 2, Vujovic 1, Murisic 1, Gardasevic 1, Muscat 1, Vucurovic 1.
Sintez Kazan: Lisunov 2, Odintsov 2, Vasilev 1, Ryzhov-Alenichev 1.
Sintez had only 12 players on the roster, like against OSC yesterday. That fact affected the Russians’ fatigue, but it didn’t make a difference in this match. Jadran produced an excellent performance and deserved three points. The young Montenegrin played maturely and controlled the match.
The hosts opened the match with a 2:0 lead. Midway through the second period, Jadran built a 3-goal lead (6:3). Sintez cut the deficit before the middle break (5:6). But, Jadran’s defense, commanded by Darko Djurovic was superb in the second half and conceded only a single goal.
Martin Gardasevic and Danilo Radovic (Jadran) block Artem Odintsov
Marko Petkovic and Vasilije Radovic gave Jadran a new three-goal lead (8:5). In the 20th minute, Odintsov converted a man-up for 6:8, and that was Sintez’s last goal in the match. Jadran dominated in the final quarter and a half and recorded a 12:6 victory.
OSC – Jadran S 14:9 (3:3, 6:3, 5:1, 0:2)
OSC Budapest: Salamon 3, Sziladi 2, Manhercz 2, Vigvari 2, Csacovszky 1, Dala 1, Burian 1.
Jadran Split: Buric 3, Marinic Kragic 2, Kharkov 1, Delic 1, Dobud 1.
OSC Budapest and Jadran Split have excellent teams that can reach high goals in Europe this season. But, OSC defeated the Croats more convincingly than expected. The middle two quarters were vital for OSC’s win.
After a balanced first quarter (3:3), Jadran Split took the lead three times (4:3, 5:4, 6:5). Jadran scored its sixth goal in the 11th minute. After that, OSC held the Croats scoreless for 08:01 minutes, while the Hungarians scored five goals in that interval. Early in the third period, OSC earned an 11:6 lead. Buric broke Jadran’s silence in the 19th minute for 7:11. But, the Hungarians answered with three goals in three minutes (Harai, Manhercz, Dala) and went to 14:7 before the final quarter. Jadran just reduced the gap in the last eight minutes.
Kristof Sziladi (OSC) and Andjelo Setka (Jadran Split) All photos by PVK Jadran Herceg Novi
Despite the fact that the Croatian team suffered a loss today, Jadran will probably secure one of the first four places in this group. Until the end of the group play, Jadran Split will face Sintez, Enka and Zaibas. OSC will play against Jadran Herceg Novi, Enka and Zaibas.
1 Jadran HN (MNE) 4 – 9 (+27)
2 OSC Budapest (HUN) 3 – 9 (+15)
3 Jadran S (CRO) 3 – 6 (+8)
4 Apollon Smyrnis (GRE) 4 – 6 (+3)
5 SIntez Kazan (RUS) 4 – 3 (-6)
6 Enka Istanbul (TUR) 3 – 3 (-7)
7 Zaibas (LTU) 3 – 0