Tomorrow, the European Men’s U15 Championships in Podgorica will feature a gold medal match between Host Montenegro and Hungary.
Montenegro continued its unbeaten streak with a thrilling victory over Greece in the semifinals, winning 15:13 after a penalty shootout.
Hungary continued to improve its play and secured an 11:6 win over Serbia, thanks to a strong finish.
I Tomorrow’s medal matches will be the second duels between the same rivals in Podgorica. Montenegro beat Hungary 11:8 in Group A, and Greece defeated Serbia 11:9 in Group B.
Spain and Italy will face in the 5th-place match. Croatia and Turkey will play for 7th place.
Today, the final standings between the 17th and 24th place have been determined.
2023 Men’s European U15 Championships, Podgorica, Day 8
Semifinals
Serbia – Hungary 6:11 (1:2, 2:3, 3:2, 0:4)
Hungary was the only of the seven European powerhouses that didn’t win a single point in the group phase. However, the Hungarians showed their best when it really mattered – in the knockout stage. Yesterday, they halted Croatia’s winning streak in the quarterfinals.
All photos by Krsto Vulovic and Filip Roganovic/WPF of Montenegro
Today, the Hungarians dictated the pace throughout the match. They had a 2-goal lead twice in the first half. Serbia successfully chased the rival for almost three quarters. The Serbs leveled the score at 1:1, 3:3, 5:5 and 6:6. In the last minute of the third period, Jambor, the best scorer of the match (4 goals), made it 7:6. Hungary added four straight goals in the fourth quarter for a big 11:6 victory.
Montenegro – Greece 15:13 (0:2, 3:4, 4:0,4:5, PSO 4:2)
The encounter between Montenegro and Greece produced big twists, which isn’t unusual for this championship and for games between teams of similar qualities in this age group. Greece, with its leader in the attack Ilias Angelopoulos dominated in the first half. The team in blue caps led 3:0 in the 8th minute and 6:2 five minutes after. However, the Montenegrins turned the tables in the second half. Thirteen seconds before the last break, Durutovic converted a man-up to put the hosts in front for the first time – 7:6.
The Montenegrins led by two goals in the fourth period (8:6, 9:7, 10:8). The Greeks leveled at 10:10. In the 31st minute, Roganovic made it 11:10. Patsilinakos equalized immediately. Since nobody scored in the last 72 seconds, a penalty shootout decided a winner.
Each goalkeeper (Montenegro’s Pejovic and Greece’s Pimplis) caught one ball in the shootout, but one of the Greek players missed and Montenegro went to the final.
5th-8th place classification, semifinals
Turkey – Spain 4:12 (0:2, 3:2, 0:6, 1:2)
Italy – Croatia 6:5 (0:1, 0:1, 4:2, 2:1)
Turkey couldn’t surprise Spain in the first semifinal for the 5th-8th places. The Spaniards led from the beginning. At the finish of the first half, Turkey narrowed the distance to one goal (3:4). However, Spain showed no mercy to the rival in the next 16 minutes.
The other semifinal offered more excitement. Croatia played very well in defense in the first half to enter the third period leading 2:0. Italy didn’t score a single goal in the first 16 minute, but between the 18th and the 21st minute, they found the net four times, conceding only one goal for a 4:3. The Croats leveled at 4:4.
The “Settebello” earned a new 5:4 lead in the 27th minute. The Croats caught up with the rival at 01:40. But, Federico Fumo beat the buzzer. He converted a man-up with just two seconds left on the clock for Italy’s 6:5 victory.
Classification matches, 17th– 24th place
For 17th place: France – Bulgaria 7:6 (2:0, 1:3, 3:2, 1:1)
For 19th place: Switzerland – Ukraine 5:14 (0:4, 2:2, 2:4, 1:4)
For 21st place: Slovenia – Czech Republic 7:4 (1:2, 2:1, 1:1, 3:0)
For 23nd place: Lithuania – Ireland 10:5 (1:0, 3:1, 5:3, 1:1)
France got off to a good start in the 17th-place match, and earned a 2:0 lead. However, Bulgaria took control after the first break. Three minutes before the last break, the Bulgarians had a 2-goal advantage (5:3). France produced a quick comeback and regained the lead before the final break (6:5). The French doubled their advantage early in the fourth period (7:5). Bulgaria made it 6:7 with 66 seconds left on the clock, but couldn’t equalize.
Ukraine convincingly beat Switzerland, which never recovered from Ukraine’s 4:0 opening of the game.
Slovenia won 21st place, with a 7:4 victory over the Czech Republic. After a 3:3 first half, the Czechs scored the first goal in the second half for 4:3 in the 18th minute. However, Slovenia made a 4:0 run in the remaining 14 minutes.
Lithuania started slowly, but it dominated in the middle two quarters of the match against Ireland and recorded a five-goal win (10:5) to finish in 23rd place.
17. France
18. Bulgaria
19.Ukraine
20.Switzerland
21. Slovenia
22.Czech Republic
23. Lithuania
24. Ireland
25.Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Day 9 (July 16)
For 15th place:Poland – Moldova (09:00)
For 13th place: Georgia – Israel (10:30)
For 11th place: Netherlands – Romania (12:00)
For 9th place: Germany – Malta (13:30)
For 7th place: Turkey – Croatia (16:00)
For 5th place: Spain – Italy (17:30)
Bronze-medal match: Serbia – Greece (19:00)
FINAL: Hungary – Montenegro (20:30)
More articles about Men’s European U15 Championships
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