LEN Euro Cup: All-Hungarian clash in final

April 10, 2021

Radomir Drasovic (Szolnok) Photo: Szolnok Vizilabda

There were no surprises in the 2nd leg of the LEN Euro Cup semifinals.

The final duel will be the all-Hungarian battle, between OSC Budapest and Szolnok.

Both teams recorded two wins each in the semis. Today, OSC defeated Vouliagmeni (11:9) in Athens in the return leg, while Szolnok achieved a big 15:8 home win over Crvena Zvezda.

The finals will be played on April 24 and May 8. It will be the second Hungarian duel in the LEN Euro Cup final. Ujpest and Ferencvaros faced off in 1997 final, and Ujpest won the trophy.

Semifinals, 2^nd leg: Vouliagmeni (Greece)– OSC (Hungary) 9:11 (1^st match 7:10), Szolnok (Hungary)- Crvena Zvezda (Serbia) 15:8 (20:12)

LEN Euro Cup semifinals, 2nd leg

Vouliagmeni – OSC Budapest 9:11 (3:3, 2:2, 3:4, 1:2) – 1st leg 7:10

Vouliagmeni:Troulos 2, Kalogeropoulos 2, Basic 2, Mylonakis 1, Alafragkis 1, Chalyvopoulos 1.
OSC Budapest: Manhercz 2, Erdelyi 2, Burian 2, Bundschuh 2, Dala 1, Toth 1, Harai 1.

The first half of the match was an even contest, with a few twists and turns. OSC scored an opening goal. However, the Greeks led for most of the first two quarters. Still, their advantage was never than a goal (2:1, 3:2, 4:3). OSC’s advantage an aggregate score wasn’t in real danger. The Hungarians regained a lead in the 14th minute (5:4). Still, Vouliagmeni’s Andrija Basic found the net four seconds before the middle break to level the score (5:5).

Kalogeropoulos gave Vouliagmeni a 6:5 lead early in the third period, but OSC responded with two quick goals and went in front (7:6). From that point on, the visiting team controlled the match. In the 26th minute, Vouliagmeni equalized for the last time (9:9). OSC secured a 2-goal win in the final five minutes.

Szolnok – Crvena Zvezda 15:8 (4:1, 4:3, 2:2, 5:2) – 1st leg 20:12

Szolnok: Konarik 4, Angyal 2, Pijetlovic 2, Drasovic 2, Ge.Kovacs 2, Filipovic 1, Teleki 1, Schmolcz 1.
Crvena Zvezda: Subotic 3, Sulc 2, Tankosic 1, Vickovic 1, Smiljevic 1.

Szolnok made a big step towards the final duel a week ago in Belgrade. Szolnok beat Crvena Zvezda in a flood of goals in the first match. After Szolnok’s 8-goal victory in Serbia, few thought that Crvena Zvezda could surprise the favorite in the return leg. And a surprise didn’t happen. Just four minutes of today’s game passed, and Szolnok already had a 4:0 advantage. But, Crvena Zvezda, which played without captain Milos Vukicevic, didn’t surrender easily. The Serbian team cut the deficit to one (3:4) in the 10th minute. Szolnok answered with a new 4:0 series and jumped to an 8:3 lead. Gavril Subotic, who arrived at Crvena Zvezda from Szolnok last summer, closed the first half with a goal for 4:8.

The third period was balanced. In the fourth quarter, the hosts, led by Akos Konarik, extended the margin of their win to seven.

All in all, Szolnok water polo players proved that they were firm favorites in the semis and continued their march to the trophy. Crvena Zvezda can’t be disappointed. The place in the LEN Euro Cup semifinals is quite an accomplishment for a relatively young team