It’s official now—the Regional League Final Four will be held in Herceg Novi on March 28 and 29.
Jadran Herceg Novi kept the top spot and secured the right to host the final tournament after defeating Solaris in the last round of the regular season – 20:11.
Novi Beograd, Jadran Split, and Radnicki Kragujevac will also participate in the F4. Two Jadrans will meet in the semifinals, while the other pair will be a Serbian derby between Novi Beograd and Radnicki, which won 2nd and 3rd place in the regular season, respectively.
A good start put Jadran Herceg Novi on the right track in the game against Solaris. The Montenegrins earned a 5:1 lead early in the second quarter. In the middle of the quarter, Solaris narrowed the gap to two (4:6), but Jadran restored a 4-goal lead shortly after (8:4). At halftime, Jadran led 9:5. During the second half, the difference was never smaller than four goals. Dmitri Kholod contributed five goals to a 20:11 victory, while Danilo Radovic and Vuk Milojevic added three each.
Jadran Split faced significant difficulties in defeating Sabac on the home ground. Sabac was in front for more than three quarters, building a 5:2 advantage in the second quarter and further extending it to 8:4 and 9:5. Five seconds before the last break, Sabac was three goals ahead (10:7). However, Jadran Split mounted a strong comeback, scoring five consecutive goals to take a 12:10 lead with 104 seconds left on the clock. Still, the contest wasn’t over yet. Sabac scored the last two goals in the quarter. Pljevancic equalized at 12:12, just nine seconds before the final buzzer, and prolonged the match to a penalty shootout. Jadran won two points with a 19:18 victory. Jadran’s Zvonimir Butic stood out with seven goals (five in the 32 minutes of play and two in the shootout). Ognjen Stojanovic scored five goals for Sabac (four in the regular time and one in the shootout)
Novi Beograd confirmed 2nd place with an easy 19:6 victory over Valis. Marko Dimitrijevic was the top scorer with three goals.
UPDATE, Sunday, March 23:
In the last match of the 22nd round, Radnicki defeated Primorac in a high-scoring encounter in Kotor. Radnicki, led by Strahinja Rasovic (5 goals), recorded a 21:15 victory and kept 3rd place. The game was an even contest until 11:11. Then, Radnicki went on a 3:0 run in less than three minutes, building a 3-goal lead for the first time – 14:11. Primorac narrowed the gap to two goals twice, but Radnicki dominated the fourth quarter and stretched the margin to six.
Jug defeated Mladost 13:11 in the “Croatian classic.” Marko Zuvela was unstoppable, scoring five goals for Jug.
Valis has been relegated to the A1 league and will be replaced by Mornar Split. After winning first place in the A1 group, Mornar Split will return to the highest league. Solaris and Zadar 1952 will meet in the relegation playoffs.
2024/25 Regional League, Round 22
Jadran Herceg Novi – Solaris 20:11 (4:1, 5:4, 5:3, 6:3)
Novi Beograd – Valis Vega 19:6 (5:2, 6:1, 6:2, 2:2)
Jadran Split – Sabac 19:18 (1:2, 3:4, 4:4. 4:2, PSO 7:6)
Played on Sunday:
Primorac – Radnički 15:21 (4:4, 5:6, 4:6, 2:5)
Crvena Zvezda – Primorje 13:14 (6:5, 1:4, 2:4, 4:1)
Jug – Mladost 13:11 (4:4, 2:2, 4:3, 2:2)
1. Jadran m:tel HN 22 – 57
2. Novi Beograd 22 – 56
3. Radnicki 22 – 52
4. Jadran S 22 – 51
5. Mladost 22 – 41
6. Sabac Elixir 22 – 30
7. Jug AO 21 – 28
8. Primorac 21 – 25
9. Primorje EB 22 – 20
10. Crvena Zvezda 22 – 18
11. Solaris 22 – 14
12. Valis Vega 22 – 1
