Crvena Zvezda continued winning in big matches a week after it surprised the favorites by clinching the Serbian Cup.
The Serbian League restarted after a seven-week break with the games of the first round in the playoffs group (1st – 6th place).
The highlight of the week was an encounter between Crvena Zvezda and Partizan. Crvena Zvezda, the visiting team in this match, celebrated a narrow 11:10 victory. Interestingly, this match was Crvena Zvezda’s third win with the same score in important games. The Red Whites beat Radnicki in the Serbian Cup semifinals and Novi Beograd in the final by 11:10.
2022/23 Serbian League, Day 10
Group 1st – 6th place (1st round of 2nd stage)
Partizan – Crvena zvezda 10:11 (4:2, 3:2, 2:5, 1:2)
Partizan: Trtovic 3, Milos 2, Musikic 1, Gladovic 1, Smiljevic 1, Giga 1.
Crvena Zvezda: Vasic 3, Radovic 3, Basara 2, Gajic 1, Markovic 1, Vukicevic 1.
Novi Beograd – Sabac 20:13 (5:4, 6:2, 5:3, 4:4)
Novi Beograd: Mandic 5, Cetkovic 4, Vucinic 3, S.Rasovic 2, Skoumpakis 2,Granados 1, Martinovic 1, Vlachopoulos 1, Shushiashvili 1.
Sabac: Sulc 5, Krug 3, Stojanovic 3, Sakhudinov 2.
Valis – Radnicki 9:12 (1:4, 1:2, 2:3, 5:3)
Valis: Baucalo 3, Obradovic 2, Gavrilovic 2,Sofranac 1, Gavrilovic 1.
Radnicki: Draskovic 3, Ukropina 2, Vrlic 2, Stanojevic 1, Jankovic 1, Cuk 1, Pljevancic 1, Lukic 1.
The derby Partizan – Crvena Zvezda was very similar to the final of the Serbian Cup. The game was full of twists and turns. Crvena Zvezda started better and scored the opening two goals, but Partizan responded with a 5:0 run for a 5:2 lead. In the middle of the second period, the hosts stretched the margin to four (7:3).
Crvena Zvezda was able to come back. The visitors, led by Dusan Vasic, scored four goals in a row, leveled at 7:7. However, Partizan regained a lead – 9:7. A new turn was yet to come. Crvena Zvezda scored three straight goals. Early in the fourth period, leftie Marko Radovic found the net, and Crvena Zvezda took its first lead in the second half – 10:9. Trtovic equalized at 10:10. Still, Crvena Zvezda took all three points as Crvena Zvezda’s captain Dusan Markovic closed the match with a goal for 11:10 with 58 seconds left on the clock. Partizan had the last possession in the game but failed to equalize.
Novi Beograd still has problems with injuries and illnesses. Nikola Jaksic and Radomir Drasovic weren’t on the team that played against Sabac. The Regional League champion didn’t shine, but it secured a convincing win. Sabac kept up with the hosts in the first quarter. However, Novi Beograd broke Sabac’s resistance in the second quarter. It earned a five-goal lead (11:6). The home side, led by Dusan Mandic and Savo Cetkovic, extended the margin of its win to seven.
Radnicki earned an away win over Valis in Valjevo. The Kragujevac-based side dictated the pace from the beginning. Midway through the third period, Radnicki had a huge 9:2 lead. Still, the hosts didn’t surrender. Valis scored five goals in a row and reduced the gap to two (7:9) with 05:30 minutes left on the clock. But, Radnicki retook control quickly. It went to 11:7 and secured a win. The best scorer in the visiting team was Vuk Draskovic, who arrived from Primorac recently. He scored three goals. Valis’ Baucalo found the net three times, too.
1. Radnicki 6 games – 16 points
2.Novi Beograd 6 – 15
3.Crvena Zvezda 6 – 10
4. Partizan 6 – 9
5. Sabac 6 – 3
6. Valis 6 – 0
*The teams carried the results from the mutual encounters in the 1st phase to the 2nd stage of the league
The relegation group (Proleter, NBG Vukovi, Nais and Vojvodina) will start in three weeks.
