Two surprises happened in the leagues of the ex-Yu countries this weekend.
Title-holder Jug Dubrovnik was defeated by Jadran Split in the 14th round of the Croatian league.
In Serbia, Vojvodina upset Novi Beograd, which was the league-leader until mid-March.
2020/21 Croatian League, Day 14
Group I (1st – 6th place)
Jug AO – Jadran S 13:15 (4:3, 5:5, 1:2, 3:5)
Mladost – Solaris 12:6 (4:0, 2:1, 4:2, 2:3)
Mornar – Primorje 9:12 (3:2, 3:2, 3:3, 0:5)
Jug has had a lot of ups and downs since the beginning of March (after many of the players returned from the Olympic qualifications). The Dubrovnik-based side posted two wins and two losses in the Champions League. That was followed by a defeat to Solaris in Croatia, but Jug beat Mladost in the big derby last week. Still, the side from the Gruz pool didn’t get back on the right track.
Jug lost to Jadran Split, but still keeps 1st place in the standings. Jadran, which played without Croatia’s defender Rino Buric (injury), started better and took a 3:1 lead. Jug responded with a 4:0 rush and gained a 5:3 advantage. Still, the Split-based equalized shortly after that – 5:5. Jug re-built a 2-goal lead (10:8) in the middle of the third period, but Jadran caught up with the hosts before the final quarter (10:10). The fourth period saw a big battle. Jadran had an 11:10 and 12:11 lead, but Jug leveled the score on both occasions. Midway through the fourth quarter, Jadran earned a 2-goal advantage (14:12) and kept the distance until the end.
Jerko Marinic Kragic led Jadran with five goals. Loren Fatovic scored three for Jug.
Jadran and Jug will face each other again in six days. On Saturday, they will clash in the semifinal of the Regional League Final Four in Zagreb. Mladost and Radnicki Kragujevac will play in the second semifinal.
Mladost knocked down Solaris in the opening minutes. The Regional League winner earned a 5:0 lead, and there was no way back for the visitors. Croatia’s captain Andro Buslje was the best scorer, with three goals.
Primorje produced a big comeback to beat Mornar in Split. Three minutes before the end of the third period, Mornar had a 3-goal lead (9:6). But, Primorje kept the home team goalless in the remaining 11 minutes while making a 6:0 series for a 12:9 victory.
1 Jug 13 – 33*
2 Mladost 13 – 33*
3 Jadran S 13 – 33*
4 Primorje EB 13 – 27
5 Mornar 13 – 18
6 Solaris 13 – 18
*Table of the encounters between the first three teams: Jug 9 pts (4 games), Mladost 3 (3), Jadran 3 (3)
Group II (7th – 11th place)
Zadar 1952 – Galeb 13:20 (1:4, 2:4, 3:7, 5:5)
KPK – POSK postponed
Medvescak bye
7 Medvescak 11 – 12
8 KPK 12 – 10
9 Galeb 12 – 10
10 POSK 10 – 9
11 Zadar 1952 13 -0
2020/21 Serbian League, Day 13
Vojvodina – Novi Beograd 10:8 (3:2, 3:3, 2:2, 2:1)
Zemun – Banjica 11:4 (2:2, 2:0, 5:2, 2:0)
Sabac – Partizan 13:11 (3:3, 3:3, 4:4, 3:1)
Radnicki – Stari Grad 19:8 (4:3, 5:1, 5:3, 5:1)
Nais – Crvena Zvezda 6:10 (1:4, 1:2, 1:2, 3:2)
Vojvodina has produced the biggest surprise of the season in the Serbian League so far by beating Novi Beograd in the match played in Novi Sad. Vojvodina opened the match with a 3:1 lead and controlled the game until the end. Novi Beograd could go in front just once. In the 22nd minute, the visitors had a slim advantage (7:6), but Vojvodina replied with three goals in a row and secured a 9:7 advantage which proved vital for the hosts’ victory. Russian Ivan Gusarov scored four goals for Vojvodina. As usual, Drasko Gogov was the best scorer in Novi Beograd. He also found the net four times.
Radnicki and Crvena Zvezda left no chance to their respective rivals.
An exciting match was played in Sabac, where Partizan fought bravely, but it couldn’t surprise reigning champion Sabac. The hosts were led by former center-forward of Partizan Djordje Vucinic and newcomer Srdjan Vuksanovic (who returned to Serbia from Kazakhstan a few months ago). Each scored three goals. Brazilian Luis Ricardo Real scored three for Partizan.
1 KVK Radnicki 13 – 36
2 Novi Beograd 011 13 – 31*
3 Crvena Zvezda 13 – 31*
4 Sabac 13 – 27
5 Vojvodina 13 – 21
6 Partizan 13 – 18
7 Zemun 13 – 13
8 Nais 13 – 11
9 Stari Grad 13 – 2
10 Banjica 13 – 1
*Head-to-head points: Novi Beograd 4, Crvena Zvezda 1.
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