Three out of the four host nations kicked off their European Championship qualifying campaign in impressive fashion this evening, securing convincing victories.
Romania, Bulgaria, and especially Portugal delivered resounding wins on the opening day of the qualification tournaments for the upcoming European Championships, set to be held in Netanya, Israel, early next year.
Great Britain achieved a significant triumph by dismantling Germany with a commanding 13-5 victory, greatly bolstering their chances of qualifying for the tournament for the first time in a decade.
In Novi Sad, only one match took place, where the Czech Republic emerged victorious over Ukraine, while Switzerland succumbed to Turkiye in Otopeni.
Serbia and Slovakia are both in action tomorrow.
Day 1 Women’s European Championship Qualification Round
Group A
Bulgaria 11 – 7 Malta (0-2, 2-1, 6-3, 3-1)
Bulgaria: P. Eftimova, A. Gesheva 1, T. Valcheva, M. Hristova 2, V. Todorova, I. Spasova, T. Bizheva 1, R. Rumenova 1, M. Naneva 4, S. Dimitrova, I. Dimitrova 2, R. Zhelyazkova, E. Stefanova
Malta: K. Agius, E. Montfort 1, E. Amato, K. Navarro 1, M. Perici Ferrante 2, L. Cachia, F. Paolella 1, K. Agius 1, D. Micallef 1, A. Bonello, Z. Bartolo, N. Azzopardi, K. Plumpton.
Group B
Turkiye 10 – 8 Switzerland (4-1, 3-3, 2-0, 1-4)
Turkiye: E. Aydinlik, E. Gurelli, D. Burali 2, H. Suzmecelik, Z. Erdem, E. Temel, H. Dabbag, S. Colak, D. Kaleagasi 4, K. Kys 2, D. Cengiz 1, D. Pehlivanoglu, C. Bulut.
Switzerland: L. Friedman, E. Capaccioli. J. Kohli 2, L. Verhagen 1, P. De Feo 4, D. Carballo Chanfon 1, M. Stucki, E. De Bue, A. Grandis, L. Oberli, M. Adler, A. Morgenegg, M. Schmidt.
Romania 14 – 9 Sweden (4-1, 3-4, 2-2, 5-2)
Romania: D. Toganel, A. Matei Guiman, K. Szeghalmi 1, R. Cristea, A. Olteanu, A. Bobeanu, A. Sandu 1, A. Dumitru, A. Serbanescu 4, D. Nagy, A. Melnychuk 1, M. Dvorzhetska
Sweden: M. Andersson, L. Hazell 4, E. Lindman Long 2, I. Alysandratou, S. Zdolsek 1, S. Elias, S. Lonnberg, G. Hassler 1, M. Backlund, F. Beiming, B. Landmark, A. Roloff 1, N. Becker
Group C
Czechia 13 – 7 Ukraine (4-2, 2-3, 3-2, 4-0)
Czechia: N. Remisova, N. Busauervoa 1, L. Capova, K. Kopencova 1, L. Votavova, K. Javurkova 3, K. Hlavata 2, J. Hola 4, K. Simkova, R. Fugnerova 2, B. Kilianova, A. Hulikova.
Ukraine: O. Riabchenko, A. Lenska 1, O. Belinska, K. Babak 1, A. Shevchenko, I. Aboimova 1, A. Aleksieienko, A. Zelenko 2, K. Naumenko, Z. Kolochkina 1, K. Shevchenko, V. Tymoshenko
Group D
Portugal 28 – 4 Finland (10-2, 4-0, 7-2, 7-0)
Portugal: M. Sampaio, A. Rodrigues 6, C. Fernandes 4, C. Reis 3, J. Teixeira 1, A. Jardim, E. Matos 2, M. Lousa, M. Machado 2, B. Pereira 2, V. Freire 1, B. Carmo, B. Cavaleiro
Finland: E. Alander, L. Jokiluhta, R. Koivisto 2, M. Tanke, A. Aikala 2, L. Dovalo, M. Ikola, N. Kuosmanen, A. Alava, K. Saarinen, S. Lehtinen, N. Busk, E. Kozar
Germany 5 – 13 Great Britain (1-4, 0-4, 1-3, 3-2)
Germany: D. Heinbichner, B. Vosseberg, A. Rieck, S. Plotz, E. Ludwig 1, I. Petiki, G. Sopiadou, A. Fry, G. Tadday 1, A. Merkel 1, J. Stuwe, J. Haas 2, V. Krause.
Great Britain: S. Jackson, M. Nurthern, A. Peters 1, L. Turner 5, T. Falvey, I. Howe 3, R. Huck, B. Tafazolli, K. Rogers 1, K. Cutler 2, N. Moloney, A. Clapperton 1, A. Robinson.
The story of the day lies with Great Britain’s emphatic victory over Germany (13-5), which almost certainly guarantees them a spot at the European Championships in Tel Aviv. Team GB started on the front-foot, and five goals in the first eleven minutes of the game from Lily Turner ensured that the Brits defeated a team that finished 10th at the last European Championships.
Moving on to Group D, Portugal easily overcame Finland with a score of 28-4. One-third of Portugal’s goals came in the first quarter, with Madalena Lousa and Alice Rodrigues both scoring double-hat-tricks in the match.
The closest game of the day took place in Group B in Otopeni, where Turkiye secured a 10-8 victory over Switzerland. It could have been a more comfortable afternoon for the Turks if they hadn’t missed two penalties in the second and third quarters. The Swiss didn’t create many scoring opportunities and endured a 15-minute goal drought in the latter part of the game.
Romania, the host of back-to-back tournaments in their beautiful new pool in Otopeni, outperformed Sweden by five goals. Rapid’s Alina Olteanu (5) and Steaua’s Ana Serbanescu (4) contributed significantly to the goal tally.
There was just the one game played in Group A and Group C, with Bulgaria coming from behind to defeat Malta in Burgas (11-7), and the Czech Republic outrunning Ukraine, 13-7.
Tomorrow’s Fixtures (CEST)
16:00 – Sweden vs Turkiye
17:30 – Romania vs Switzerland
18:00 – Serbia vs Czechia
18:00 – Germany vs Finland
18:00 – Malta vs Slovakia
20:30 – Great Britain vs Portugal.
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