There are no unbeaten teams in the LEN Euro Cup after the fourth round of the group stage.
The reigning champion Vasas, which was the only team with three wins in the first three rounds, lost to Honved in a thrilling Hungarian derby – the most anticipated duel on Day 4. The match, with many ups and downs and comebacks, ended in a 15:15 tie. Honved emerged victorious in the penalty shootout (19:16). Despite the loss, Vasas still leads Group B.
Two matches ended in a shootout in the fourth round. The other one was played in France, in Group A. Solaris kept the slim chances of advancing to the next round alive after defeating Tourcoing (18:17)
Primorac secured a hard-fought 12:10 victory over Trieste to maintain the top spot in Group D, and BVSC climbed to the top of Group C with an away win over Hannover.
Barcelona is atop Group A.
With only two rounds remaining, none of the participating teams has secured a spot in the eighth-finals yet. Apollon Smyrnis and Trieste are the only two teams that have no chance of advancing to the Round of 16.
2023/24 Euro Cup, Group Phase, Round 4
Group A
Tourcoing – Solaris 17:18 (2:2, 3:3, 2:3, 3:2, PSO 7:8)
Tourcoing: Marzouki 5, Furman 4, Lepoint 2, D.Zivkovic 2, M.Brguljan 2, Durik 1, Canonne 1
Solaris: A.Petkovic 7, Pelicaric 6, D.Akrap 2, Vrdoljak 2, Burburan 1.
Barcelona – Telimar 11:3 (3:0, 3:3, 1:0, 4:0)
Barcelona: Goma 3, Valls 2, Daura 2, Veich 1, Prat 1, Ramon 1, Andrade 1.
Telimar: Fabiano 1, Giorgetti 1, Occhione 1.
Solaris earned its first points in the 2024 LEN Euro Cup after a thriller in France. The Croats led 8:7 at the last break. Early in the fourth period, an experienced Antonio Petkovic doubled the visitors’ advantage. However, Tourcoing replied with three goals. Just 11 seconds before the end, Furman gave the hosts a 10:9 lead. But, Petkovic beat the buzzer. He netted his fifth goal in regular time with just three seconds left on the clock and leveled at 10:10. After eight rounds of penalty shots, Solaris took two points.
The match between Barcelona and Telimar was considered the derby of Day 4 in Group A. Telimar edged out Barcelona (12:11) in Telimar five weeks ago. But, the duel in Catalonia lacked excitement. After a 30 first quarter, Telimar reduced the gap to two twice in the second quarter (1:3 and 3:5). The Italians netted their third goal in the 14th minute. In the following 18, they couldn’t find the net and Barcelona completely outplayed them.
Standings: 1. Barcelona 9, 2. Tourcoing 7, 3. Telimar 6, 4. Solaris 2.
Group B
Vasas – Honved 16:19 (4:1, 1:5, 3:6, 7:3, PSO 1:4)
Vasas: Burian 6, S.Rasovic 4, Batizi 3, Dedovic 2, Zernivary 1.
Honved: Vadovics 6, Szepfalvi 2, Zs. Ekler 2, B.Ekler 2, Simon 2, Sugar 1, Fejos 1, Kiss 1, B.Sessels 1, Nyiri 1.
Savona – Apollon Smyrnis 13:10 (4:1, 3:3, 4:5, 2:1)
Savona:Djurdjic 4, Figlioli 4, Bruni 2, Rizzo 1, Guidi 1, Erdelyi 1.
Apollon Smyrnis:Gardikas 4, Troulos 2, Bogdanovic 1, Shushiashvili 1, Chondrokoukis 1, Solanakis 1.
Both teams entered the Hungarian derby cautiously and slowly and nothing indicated that the match would turn into a scoring festival. After five and a half minutes, the score was 1:1. Then, Vasas scored three unanswered goals for a commanding 4:1 lead at the first break. However, Honved struck back strongly – with four goals in a row in the first four minutes of the second half and went ahead 5:4. The hosts leveled, but Honved regained a lead 22 seconds before the middle break when Vadovics converted a man-up for 6:5. The same player netted an action goal at the beginning of the third quarter for 7:5.In the following minutes, the teams exchanged the goals. Honved led 9:8 in the 21st minute. However, the teams in the blue caps finished this period excellently – with three straight goals and a huge 12:8 lead before the final quarter.
Vasas came close to the rival four times in the final period (11:12, 12:13, 13:14), but Honved responded after each of these goals. Benedek Batizi made it 14:15 with 42 seconds left on the clock. Honved didn’t attempt to score in its final possession. Vasas earned a man-up at 0:06. Gergely Burian converted it just a second before the buzzer and the great match continued in a penalty shootout.
The 2nd and 3rd series of the shots were decisive. Honved’s goalkeeper, Farkas, saved shots from Batori and Dedovic.
The derby was a duel between two left-handed players. Viktor Vadovics scored five goals in regular time for Honved, and Gergely Burian netted five for Vasas. Both added one goal in the penalty shootout.
Savona built a crucial 3-goal advantage in the first quarter. Apollon managed to cut the deficit to one goal in the 15th minute (4:5). But, veteran Pietro Figlioli responded with two quick goals. Savona entered the second half leading 7:4. The difference was never smaller than two goals in the remaining 16 minutes.
Standings: 1. Vasas 10, 2. Savona 9, 3. Honved 5, 4. Apollon 0.
Group C
Primorje – Sabac 15:10 (4:2, 4:2, 4:3, 3:3)
Primorje EB: Te Riele 4, Brubnjak 3, Paparic 3, Crippa 2, Kadivec 1, Da.Brguljan 1, Babic 1.
Sabac: Macic 2, Dragovic 2, Stojanovic 2, Novakovic 1, Krug 1, Barac 1, Korac 1.
Waspo 98 – BVSC 12:17 (4:5, 2:5, 3:3, 3:4)
Waspo 98 Hannover: Schipper 2, Lozina 2, Milradovic 2, Benic 2, Macan 1, Gansen 1, Jaeschke 1, Basic 1.
BVSC – Zuglo: Tatrai 3, Csapo 3, Cs. Meszaros 3, E.Csacsovsky 2, Gal 2, M.Meszaros 1, A.Csacsovszky 1, Gyarfas 1, Bundschuh 1
In the first round of the Euro Cup Group C, Primorje led 8:4 against Sabac in Serbia, but the hosts earned three points with an excellent 6:0 finish (10:8). Today, Primorje had an 8:4 advantage at halftime. This time, it didn’t let Sabac make another comeback. The hosts’ goalkeeper, Mauro Ivan Cubranic, did a great job in the first half, with several saves (including one penalty shot). The Dutchman Kas Te Riele opened the second half with two goals – the Croats stretched the margin to six (10:4), which was enough for a peaceful ending.
Until the middle of the second quarter of the match in Hannover, Waspo 98 and BVSC were in a neck-and-neck race. The score was tied at every number from 1 to 4. The Hungarians earned a two-goal lead in the 10th minute (6:4). Hannover halved the distance immediately. However, BVSC’s 3:0 run in less than two minutes followed that. The visitors earned a 9:5 advantage. Hannover couldn’t come close to BVSC in the next two quarters and a half.
Standings: 1. BVSC 9, 2. Primorje 6, 3. Sabac 6, 4. Waspo 98 3.
Group D
Trieste – Primorac 10:12 (2:3, 2:2, 4:4,2:3)
Trieste: Marziali 3, Valentino 2, Dasic 2, Mladossich 2, Buljubasic 1.
Primorac: Mrsic 4, Perov 2, Markovic 2, Dr. Brguljan 1, Vico 1, Vuckovic 1, P.Cetkovic 1.
Panionios – Ortigia 13:10 (3:2, 3:3, 3:1, 4:4)
Panionios: Kopeliadis 3, Gkiouvetsis 3, Gounas 2, Ukropina 2, Papakos 1, Kalaitzis 1, Kapetanakis 1.
Ortigia: Ferrero 4, Cassia 3, Girbaldi 1, Bitadze 1, Napolitano 1.
Primorac recorded two maybe crucial back-to-back victories in Italy. In the previous round, it beat Ortigia in Sicily. Today, Primorac bagged three points in Trieste. However, the Montenegrins secured a win over Trieste only at the finish. The visitors built a 2-goal lead in the third period (7:5, 8:6, 9:7). Trieste started coming back into the match with a goal from Mladossich, scored eight seconds before the last break. The hosts kept the momentum and added two goals in the final quarter for a 10:9 lead (02:49 before the end). Drasko Brguljan leveled immediately. The Montenegrins scored two goals in the final 46 seconds to keep the top spot in the group and to send Trieste out of the race for the quarterfinals.
An excellent opening put Panionios on the right track in the match against Ortigia. The Greeks rushed to a 3:0 lead. However, Ortigia trailed by a goal after the first quarter (2:3) thanks to two goals scored in the last 31 seconds of the first quarter. But, Panionios kept an advantage for a while. Ortigia leveled (6:6) in the 28th minute. However, it was just a wake-up alarm for the Greeks, who kept the Sicilians goalless for seven minutes while netting four goals for a safe 10:6 advantage. That series secured the win for the hosts.
Standings: 1. Primorac 9, 2. Panionios 8, 3. Ortigia 6, 4. Trieste 1.
The next round will be played in seven days – on November 23.
The full schedule of the LEN Euro Cup – HERE
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