All favorites collected points on the last competition day in Division 2 at the 36th Men’s European Championships in Croatia.
Olympic champion Serbia confirmed the top spot in Group C with a comfortable 21:4 victory over Malta. As expected, Germany qualified for the crossover round from Group C, along with Serbia. The Germans beat Israel 14:8 today.
Romania remained unbeaten in Group D in Dubrovnik. The Romanians were behind Slovakia for most of the match, but it took three points with a 7:6 win. The Netherlands finished in 2nd place in Dubrovnik. The Dutch trashed Slovenia in the last game of the group stage.
The crossover round starts tomorrow. The full road to the medals is in the article.
2024 European Men’s Championships (January 4 – 16), Day 6
Group C (Zagreb)
Serbia – Malta 21:4 (5:0, 6:1, 5:1, 5:2)
Serbia: Milojevic 4, S.Rasovic 3, Randjelovic 3, Radulovic 3, N.Jaksic 3, P.Jaksic 1 Mandic 1, Lazic 1, Vico 1, V.Rasovic 1.
Malta: Muscat 1, Cutajar 1, Muscat 1, Cachia 1, N.Zammit 1.
The Serbian team had a shooting training session ahead of their highly anticipated match at the 36th Europeans Zagreb – against France tomorrow. Malta had only 11 players available (one was suspended and three injured). However, Malta wouldn’t have a chance to surprise even with a larger number of players on the roster.
Vuk Milojevic (L) was the best scorer in the win over Malta Photo by Slobodan Sandic/WPF of Serbia
Almost all field players of the Serbian team got on the scoresheet. Petar Jaksic scored his first goal for the Serbian national team.
The clash between the Serbs and the French is undoubtedly the highlight of the crossover round. Seeking redemption for their defeat in Split in 2022, which relegated them to Division 2, the Serbs are eager to turn the tables. However, France, despite three losses in Group A, has proven its status among the top European teams, showcasing its high ambitions in the competition.
Germany – Israel 14:8 (6:3, 3:3, 3:1, 2:2)
Germany: Schuetze 3, Strelezkij 3, Chiru 3, Bozic 2, Seifert 1, Sekulic 1, Gansen 1.
Israel: Goldschmidt 3, Koter 2, Gros 1, Klarfeld 1, Begin 1.
The Germans achieved their first goal in Zagreb by winning 2nd place, thus qualifying among the top 12 teams. The Germans didn’t let Israel think it could make a surprise. They had a 8-goal lead (14:6) early in the fourth period and slowed down in the final minutes to save energy for a challenging game against Montenegro tomorrow.
Standings: 1. Serbia 9, 2. Germany 6, 3. Malta 3, 4. Israel 0.
Road to the medals
(all games will be played in Zagreb, all times are CET)
Crossover round
CO MATCH 1: France – Serbia (January 10, 18:30)
CO4: Montenegro – Germany (January 10, 20:15)
CO2: Georgia – Romania (January 11, 17:00)
CO3: Greece – Netherlands (January 11, 19:00)
Quarterfinals (January 12)
Hungary– Winner CO1 (15:00, to be confirmed)
Spain – Winner CO2 (16:30, TBC)
Croatia – Winner CO3 (18:30, TBC)
Italy – Winner CO4 (20:15, TBC)
Semifinals (January 14)
Hungary/Winner CO1 – Croatia/Winner CO3 (16.30)
Spain/Winner C02 – Italy/Winner CO4 (20:15)
Final day (January 16)
Bronze-medal match (16:30)
Final (20:15)
Group D (Dubrovnik)
Slovakia – Romania 7:8 (1:1, 3:3, 3:2, 0:2)
Slovakia: Marek Tkac 2, Balaz 2, Maros Tkac 1, Tisaj 1, Caraj 1.
Romania: Fulea 4, Georgescu 2, Prioteasa 1, Tepelus 1.
The Slovaks proved that a 6:17 loss to the Netherlands hadn’t been their real face. They can play an equal game against a rival like Romania or the Netherlands. Slovakia fought hard even though it had slim chances to qualify to the crossover round. It dictated the pace for most of the match, but it couldn’t earn a consolation victory.
Slovakia took a one-goal lead five times in the first half. Fourteen seconds before the buzzer, the ball slipped under the hand of Romania’s goalkeeper Tic, but after as VAR review “said”, it didn’t cross the imaginary goal line and Slovakia failed to earn a 2-goal advantage. Instead of 5:3, it stood 4:4 at halftime because Vlad Georgescu leveled two seconds before the middle break.
Marek Tkac (SVK) against Romania’s defense Photo: European Aquatics / Tonci Plazibat / CROPIX
The game followed a similar pattern in the third period, but Slovakia finally earned a 2-goal lead. In the 23rd minute, Patrik Tisaj converted a man-up for 7:5. It was the Slovaks’ only power-play goal in the match (they had a poor percentage – 1/9). At the same time, it was Slovakia’s last goal in the game, while Romania scored three in the last nine minutes.Two and a half minutes before the end, Vlad Georgescu gave Romania the first lead in the match – 8:7. The Romanians kept that advantage until the end.
Romania will face Georgia in the crossover round. The winner of that match will qualify for the World Championships in Fukuoka if the Netherlands doesn’t surprise Greece.
Slovakia continues the Championships as the favorite in the matches for the 13th – 16th place classification.
Netherlands – Slovenia 23:7 (7:2, 4:1, 8:3, 4:1)
Netherlands: Ven der Weijden 5, Ten Broek 5, Van Ijperen 3, De Mey 3, Nispeling 3, Te Riele 2, Van den Burg 1, Muller 1.
Slovenia: Stefanovic 3, Tropan 2, Canc 1, Lah 1.
The Netherlands, led by Mart van der Weijden and Lars ten Broek, demonstrated the power in the match against Slovenia. The Dutch fans hope that the players saved enough “gunpowder” for the duel with Greece.
Slovenia stays in Dubrovnik and will try to record its first win in the matches for the 13th-16th place classification. The Slovenian’s next rival will be Malta.
Standings: 1. Romania 9, 2. Netherlands 6, 3. Slovakia 3, 4. Slovenia 0.
European Championships schedule and scores
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