A day before the end of the Men’s European Championships Qualifiers, almost all of the eight tickets for the ECH in Split have been booked.
Five teams have secured their spots at the Europeans, which will be held in Split between August 27 and September 10.
Georgia, Slovakia (Group B), Romania, Malta (Group C) and the Netherlands (Group D) qualified for the Championships. Therefore, there are only three available berths.
Everything is still open in Group A. But, it’s almost sure that Germany, which beat Slovenia convincingly today, will qualify. The match between France and Slovenia will decide which team will join Germany and advance to the European Championships.
Turkey, Israel, and Ukraine can reach 2nd place in Group D (Netanya).
There were no surprises on the third competition day. The derby was an encounter between the Netherlands and Turkey played in Netanya. But, in the middle of the match, the game turned into a one-sided contest. The Dutch recorded an 18:10 win. Israel beat Ukraine in a close battle (7:6) in the same group.
Romania has recorded the most convincing win of the qualifications so far. The Romanians managed to score even 41 goals in 32 minutes and beat Poland 41:5.
2022 European Championships, Qualifications, Day 3
Group A (Kranj, Slovenia)
ROUND 4
Belgium – Switzerland 11:15 (1:2, 3:3, 2:5, 5:5)
Belgium: Van der Jeugt 3, Dulin 3, Godeau 2, Van Hoey1, Claes 1, Pannecoucke 1.
Switzerland: P. Herzog 4, Carballo 4, Pleyer 3, Lucato 2, J.Herzog 1, Szer 1.
Slovenia – Germany 5:20 (1:4, 2:5, 0:5, 2:6)
Slovenia: Lah 2, Popovic 1, Kadivec 1,M.Nastran 1.
Germany: Kueppers 6, Restovic 3, Schuetze 2, Stamm 2, Van der Bosch 2, Bozic 1, Juengling 1, Kubisch 1, Cuk 1, Gansen 1
France bye
Slovenia dreamed of a surprise in the match against Germany. A 43-year old Matej Nastran gave the hosts a 1:0 lead. However, the Germans killed all the Slovenians’ hopes shortly after and proved that they were the heavy favorites. Two and a half minutes before the middle break, Germany had a 7:1 advantage. Only a winning margin was in question. At the end of the game, 15 goals separated the rivals.
Germany hasn’t qualified for the European Championships yet. They will miss the tournament in Split if they lose to Belgium in the 5th round, and Slovenia beats France. But nobody expects such a scenario.
Marko Stamm (Germany) Photo by Aleksander Sokler
Slovenia is still in the race for the ECH berths. However, it will be a huge surprise if the hosts defeat France and qualify for the tournament in Split.
Switzerland recorded a consolation victory over Spain in its last match in the tournament in Kranj.
1.France 3 – 7 (+38)
2.Germany 3 – 7 (+33)
3. Slovenia 3 – 6
4. Switzerland 4 – 3
5. Belgium 3 – 0
February 20: Belgium – Germany (09:30), Slovenia – France (11:30)
Group B (Tbilisi, Georgia)
ROUND 2
Belarus – Slovakia 8:19 (2:5, 1:5, 3:5, 2:4)
Belarus: Filimonau 3, Malyshau 2, Radzko 2, Hiridziuk 1.
Slovakia: Marek Tkac 6, Furman 3, Zatovic 2, Durik 2, Zareva 2, Balaz 2, Kovacik 1, Caraj 1.
Georgia – Poland 22:1 (8:0, 7:1, 2:0, 5:0)
Georgia: Dadvani 3, Shushiashvili 3, Saric 3, Imnaishvili 3, Vasic 2, Jakhaia 2, Vapenski 2, Bitadze 1, Kavtaradze 1, Magrakvelidze 1, Adeishvili 1.
Poland: Ozga 1.
Georgia and Slovakia proved too strong for Belarus and Poland. The hosts and the Slovaks recorded convincing wins on the first two competition days and qualified for the European Championships, as was expected.
The encounter between Slovakia and Belarus was an even contest in the opening few minutes. In the 4th minute, it stood 2:2. In the following ten minutes, the Slovaks netted seven straight goals (Marek Tkac scored four of these seven). They jumped to a 9:2 lead and secured the win.
Georgia ran over Poland to book a ticket for Split. The Poles scored their only goal in the 14th minute (1:13). All players of the home team got on the scoresheet.
Georgia needs a point in tomorrow’s game against Slovakia to keep 1st place.
1.Georgia 2 – 6 (+41)
2.Slovakia 2 – 6 (+30)
3.Belarus 2 – 0 (-31)
4.Poland 2 – 0 (-40)
February 20:Poland – Belarus (10:00), Georgia – Slovakia (12:00)
Group C (Gzira, Malta)
Romania – Ireland 41:5 (10:0, 12:1, 11:1, 8:3)
Romania: Georgescu 9, Vatrai 6, Prioteasa 6, Fulea 4, Gheorghe 4, Colodrovschi 4, Neamtu 3, Vancsik 3, Dragomirescu 2.
Ireland: Walshe 2, Caufield 1, McMahon 1, Mullaney 1.
Malta – Lithuania 19:5 (5:2, 4:3, 2:0, 8:0)
Malta: Muscat 5, M. Zammit 5, Plumpton 2, Abela 2, D.Zammit 2, Galea 1, Gambin 1, N. Zammit 1.
Lithuania: Tomasevski 2, Gostautas 1, Jonkus 1, Galinok 1.
The results of today’s games in Gzira say all. Romania was merciless. The Romanians had an excellent percentage of shots in a clash with Ireland that is still far from the European top.
Malta was convincing in the match against Lithuania and secured its fourth consecutive appearance at the European Championships.
1.Romania 2 – 6 (+49)
2.Malta 2 – 6 (+38)
3.Lithuania 2 – 0 (-27)
4. Ireland 2 – 0 (-60)
February 20: Ireland – Lithuania (09:00), Malta – Romania (10:30)
Group D (Netanya, Israel)
ROUND 2
Turkey – Netherlands 10:18 (2:3, 4:3, 1:6, 3:6)
Turkey: Sonmez 4, Ergin 2, Albaryak 1, Acar 1, Kahraman 1,Yalcin 1.
Netherlands: Te Riele 4, Koopman 4, Lucas 3, Muller 2, Janssen 2, Van Ijperen 1, De Mey 1, Nispelling 1.
Israel – Ukraine 7:6 (3:1, 2:3, 0:1, 2:1)
Israel: Fried 3, Schlein 1, Klarfeld 1, Goldschmidt 1, Rendler 1.
Ukraine: Ashanin 2, Osyka 1, Dzhura 1, Babaienko 1, Voitenko 1.
The derby of the day was the first game of the 2nd round in Netanya, Turkey – Netherlands.
The first half was quite interesting. The Netherlands had a 2:0 and a 4:2 advantage in the early phase of the match. The Turks scored four goals in a row within 03:14 minutes to turn around the 2-goal deficit to a 6:4 lead (14th minute). But, the Dutch struck back strongly. They produced a 6:0 run. By the middle of the third quarter, the Netherlands built a 10:6 advantage. That rush proved vital for the Dutch’s win, as Turkey couldn’t come back in the match once more.
Ukraine failed to upgrade yesterday’s surprising draw against Turkey. The Ukrainians lost narrowly to host Israel. Before the third round, none of the teams hasn’t been eliminated. Turkey, Israel and Ukraine still have chances to reach 2nd place. But, Ukraine will have the most demanding task. It will play against the Netherlands. Israel and Turkey will face each other.
The duel between Israel and Ukraine was an even contest, but the hosts dictated the pace. In the 14th minute, Israel earned a 3-goal lead (5:2). However, Ukraine caught up with the rival eight minutes after (5:5). Israel’s goalless phase lasted for 12 minutes. Early in the fourth, the hosts went in front again (6:5), and doubled the advantage in the 28th minute (7:5). Ukraine reduced the gap with 01:44 minutes remaining on the clock, but that was the last goal in the match, and Israel celebrated the win.
1.Netherlands 2 – 6
2. Israel 2 – 3
3. Ukraine 2 – 1 (-1)
4. Turkey 2 – 1 (-8)
February 20: Ukraine – Netherlands (09:00), Israel – Turkey (10:30).
All times are local
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