The home teams collected the points in all four matches of the 12th round of the French League.
The big match of the day was an encounter between Noisy-le-Sec (Cercle 93) and Strasbourg. The Parisians recorded a 13:11 victory in a very close contest.
Tourcoing benefited from Strasbourg’s loss. It beat Montpellier in a 35-goal match (22:13) and climbed to 3rd place.
Marseille kept a perfect record with an easy win over Nice (17:8). Sete defeated Reims (13:9).
2022/23 French League, Day 12
Noisy-le-Sec – Strasbourg 13:11 (2:2, 3:3, 5:2, 3:4)
Noisy-le-Sec (Cercle 93): Bowen 5, Saudadier 2, Do Carmo 2, A.Petkovic 2, Bjorch 1, Caumette 1.
Strasbourg: Misic 3, M. Petkovic 2, Canovas 2, Popadic 1, Vitrant 1, Buha 1
Marseille – Nice 17:8 (6:2, 1:3, 6:3, 4:0)
Marseille: Vernoux 6, Olivon 2, Izdinsky 2, Vukicevic 2, Bouet 2,Daube 1, Crousillat 1, De Nardi 1.
Nice: Irmes 3, Murisic 2, Sigwalt 1, Bouhaddi 1, Cakic 1.
Tourcoing – Montpellier 22:13 (7:5, 4:4, 6:2, 5:2)
Tourcoing: Marzouki 7, Durik 6, Canonne 4, Kujacic 2, Dasic 1, D.Zivkovic 1,
Montpellier: Ivankovic 5, Vasin 2, Piot 1, Dory 1, Kalinic 1, Mustur 1, Spilliaert 1.
Sete – Reims 13:9 (2:1, 4:4, 2:1, 5:3)
Sete: Tomic 4, Furman 3, Chandieu 3, Sauton 1, Randjic 1, Bofill 1
Reims: Babic 4, Bulat 2, Culina 2, Vix 1.
Pays d’Aix bye
The derby duel Noisy-Strasbourg was the kind of match that water polo lovers expected – very exciting. After several turns in the first half, Noisy took control in the third quarter. But the game was open until the dying minutes. Each side scored two goals in the first eight minutes. After less than 20 seconds of play in the second quarter, Sasa Misic gave Strasbourg the first lead in the match (3:2). In the middle of the quarter, Noisy regained an advantage (4:3). Still, Strasbourg went ahead again, scoring two quick goals (5:4). Antonio Petkovic leveled shortly before the 3-minute break.
The third quarter was crucial for the outcome. In the 20th minute, Alex Bowen converted a penalty to give Noisy an 8:6 lead. Two goals separated the rivals for the first time. Strasbourg’s Marko Petkovic replied immediately, but Noisy earned a 3-goal advantage before the end of the period (10:7). Still, Strasbourg didn’t say its last word yet. The visitors cut the deficit to one (9:10) in the fourth period. Still, the hosts rebuilt a 3-goal lead in the 30th minute (12:9) and secured the win. Strasbourg just narrowed the gap at the finish.
Marseille played without Prlainovic, Bodegas and Cuckovic against last-placed Nice, but the champion cruised to a win. In the first quarter, Marseille earned a 4-goal lead (5:1, 6:2). Nice was a better rival in the second quarter and halved the deficit (5:7). However, Marseille, led by Thomas Vernoux, opened the third period with a 3:0 run, it jumped to 10:5 and showed that it wouldn’t let a surprise.
The first quarter of the match between Tourcoing and Montpellier indicated that the game would produce a “handball result”. Tourcoing led 7:5 at the first break. Montpellier came very close three times (6:7, 7:8, 8:9) during the second quarter, but it couldn’t equalize. Tourcoing entered the third quarter with an 11:9 advantage. The hosts dominated the third and the fourth quarter. In the 18th minute, they stretched the margin to four (13:9). In the following minutes, Montpellier couldn’t keep up with the hosts. The best scorers in a 22:13 victory were Mehdi Marzouki and Lucas Durik, who combined 13 goals, as well as all players of Montpellier together.
Sete beat Reims and moved to 5th place. Reims never took the lead, but it equalized several times in the first half (1:1, 2:2, 3:3, 4:4). Sete dictated the pace in the second half. Early in the fourth quarter, the hosts earned a 3-goal lead for the first time (9:6) and there was no way back for Reims.
1.Marseille 11 games – 33 points
2.Noisy-le-Sec 11 – 29
3. Tourcoing 11 – 21
4. Strasbourg 11 – 18
5.Sete 10 – 14
6.Pays d’Aix 10 – 11
7.Montpelleir 10 – 9
8.Reims 11 – 7
9.Nice 11 – 0
