France and Georgia, the teams relegated from Division 1 to Division 2 of the Men’s European Championships, will battle for 9th place.
The semifinals of the 9th-12th place classification took place in Dubrovnik this evening. France beat the Netherlands 16:9, while Georgia defeated Germany 15:10 after a great comeback in the fourth quarter.
Slovakia beat Slovenia 14:10 in the 13th-place match. Malta finished in 15th place after a penalty shootout win over Israel (17:16).
The 9th-place and 11th-place games are scheduled for Monday.
Tomorrow, the semifinals and matches for the 5th-8th place classifications will be played in Zagreb. The final version of the schedule has been confirmed (it’s at the end of the article)
2024 European Men’s Championships (January 4 – 16), Day 10
9th-12th place, semifinals (Dubrovnik)
France – Netherlands 16:9 (4:2, 4:3, 4:2, 4:2)
France: Vernoux 5, Crousillat 4, Khasz 3, Bouet 1, Marzouki 1, Bodegas 1, Nardon 1.
Netherlands: Muller 3, Te Riele 2, Van der Weijden 2, Van Ijpern 1, De Mey 1.
Mehdi Marzouki (FRA) Photo: European Aquatics / Tonci Plazibat / CROPIX
After four straight losses, the French recorded their first win at the 2024 European Championships.
France scored four unanswered goals in the first six minutes, and that series set the tone of the match. The Dutch got on the scoreboard in the 7th minute and they added one more before the first break. The Netherlands continued the series in the second period and trailed by a goal (3:4). Still, the French earned a 6:3 advantage with two quick goals (Enzo Khasz and Thomas Vernoux) for 6:3. France didn’t let the Dutch come close again and controlled the match until the end.
Georgia – Germany 15:10 (1:2, 5:4, 2:3, 7:1)
Georgia: Vasic 5, Pjesivac 2, Dadvani 2, Imnaishvili 2, Magrakvelidze 1 Akhvlediani 1, Shushiashvili 1, Dzikhtsiarenka 1 .
Germany: Strelezkij 4, Bozic 3, Schuetze 2, Schipper 1.
The Georgians suffered three defeats in the group stage, which was more or less expected. However, a convincing loss in the crossover match against Romania (11:18) was painful because Georgia lost a chance to qualify for the World Championships.
Stefan Pjesivac in front of Germany’s defense Photo: European Aquatics / Tonci Plazibat / CROPIX
Still, the Georgians bounced back and beat the Germans thanks to a great fourth period. The first three quarters were balanced, but the Germans were more often in front. Early in the third period, the Germans earned a two-goal lead with goals from Zoran Bozic (8:6). They had a 9:7 advantage, but the hero of the match, Dusan Vasic, closed the third quarter (8:9).
Germany ran out of gas for the fourth quarter, maybe because it had problems with illnesses in the past few days. The Georgians scored four straight goals and turned around a one-goal deficit to a 12:9 lead. Bozic saved Germany’s hope with a goal from a penalty shot in the 29th minute (10:12). However, Georgia added three goals for a comfortable 15:10 victory.
13th-place match
Slovakia – Slovenia 14:10 (3:2, 4:2, 3:2, 4:2)
Slovakia: Balaz 5, Caraj 2, Marek Tkac 2, Maros Tkac 1, Furman 1, Kaid 1, Bielik 1, Mihal 1.
Slovenia: Lah 3, Troppan 3, Kadivec 2, Popovic 1, Seljak 1.
Just like in the group stage, Slovakia beat Slovenia by four goals (eight days ago, Slovakia recorded an 11:7 win). The teams were in a neck-and-neck race until 4:4. Slovakia took a one-goal lead four times, and Slovenia leveled on each occasion.
Slovakia finished the tournament with three wins and two losses. Photo: European Aquatics / Tonci Plazibat / CROPIX
The finish of the second and the beginning of the third quarter were crucial for the outcome. The Slovaks scored three straight goals in the last two minutes of the first half and were 7:4 at the middle break. Slovakia forced a penalty foul in its first possession in the second half. Captain Samuel Balaz sent the ball into the net from the 5m line. Slovenia halved the deficit a few times (6:8, 7:9, 8:10, 9:11) but couldn’t come closer.
15th-place match
Israel – Malta 16:17 (4:4, 3:1, 2:2, 3:5, PSO 4:5)
Israel: Goldschmidt 3, Schlein 2, Gros 2, Begin 2, Klarfeld 1, Rendler 1, Ben Gal 1.
Malta: Muscat 6, Bonavia 2, Cutajar 2, Galea 1, Cachia 1.
Shootout- Israel: Goldschmidt, Begin, Rendler, SchleinMalta: Muscat 2, Galea, Cutajar, N.Zammit.
The encounter for 15th place was very similar to the duel between the same teams in Group C. Israel led for most of the time, but Malta emerged victorious.
Same as in the group game, one 4-minute exclusion didn’t make a difference. To remind you, Israel had an extra player in the 2nd quarter of the match played six days ago, but it didn’t significantly benefit from that.
Malta’s defense Photo: European Aquatics / Tonci Plazibat / CROPIX
Today, Israel’s Fotin was excluded with a substitution after four minutes at the finish of the first period. Malta equalized from a penalty awarded after the foul – 4:4. But, the islanders didn’t score a single goal in during the four minutes while Israel played with a man fewer. Moreover, Israel earned a 6:4 lead. Before the final quarter, Israel was still two steps ahead (9:7). Five minutes before the end, the Israelis extended their lead to three (11:8). Still, Malta, led by Jayden Cutajar, made a 4:0 run and went ahead – 12:11 with eight seconds left on the clock. It was Malta’s first lead in the match. Israel leveled after a time out – 12:12, but it fell short in the penalty shootout.
Day 11, Final Schedule (Zagreb)
Semifinals (January 14)
Spain – Italy (16:30)
Hungary – Croatia (18.30)
5-8th place semifinals (January 14): Serbia – Greece (15:00), Romania – Montenegro (20.15)
European Championships schedule and scores
More articles about the European Championships
