There have been a few very interesting matches in the national leagues of Serbia and Croatia in the last few days.
Radnicki climbed atop the Serbian League table. The Kragujevac-based team edged out Novi Beograd (8:7) in the big match of round 11 and grabbed 1st place on the table. Novi Beograd was the league-leader before the 11th round. The match was very exciting, and it had two finishes. The last 26 seconds were repeated after a complaint.
The second part of the regular season in Croatia has started with a big surprise. Solaris upset Jug 11:8 in the first round of the group for places 1st – 6th and ended the title-holder’s winning streak.
2020/21 Serbian League, Day 11
KVK Radnicki – Novi Beograd 011 8:7 (1:2, 3:1, 2:1, 2:3)
Crvena zvezda – Banjica 12:5 (2:1, 3:1, 4:1, 3:2)
Zemun – Stari Grad 15:5 (5:0, 5:2, 2:2, 3:1)
Nais – Partizan 5:14 (1:4, 1:5, 2:3, 1:2)
Sabac – Vojvodina 15:5 (3:1, 6:2, 3:0, 3:2)
The derby between Radnicki and Novi Beograd was a close contest. But, Radnicki was in front for most of the time. Novi Beograd got off to a better start and led 3:1. But, the hosts responded with four goals. They went up 5:3 early in the third period. In the second half, Radnicki was always in front, but the hosts’ advantage was never larger than two goals. Just 26 seconds from the end, Novi Beograd cut the deficit for the last time. Drasko Gogov converted a penalty shot for 7:8. After that, Radnicki lost the ball in the attack, and Novi Beograd had the last possession and a chance to equalize. However, the visitors also lost the ball, and the hosts saved a slim win and a big victory.
But, the big battle wasn’t ended after the final buzzer.
After the game, Novi Beograd lodged an appeal because a player who committed a penalty foul 26 seconds before the end (Nikola Lukic) didn’t leave the field of play during the penalty shot and didn’t move to the re-entry area. The Federation’s officials considered the facts and upheld the appeal. They decided that the last 26 seconds had to be repeated. The players and the officials returned to the pool, and the last 26 seconds were played again. But the outcome was the same. Gogov scored from a penalty again, and after that Radnicki kept the ball and the win. The hosts didn’t attempt to score in the remaining 26 seconds.
Nikola Lukic was the best scorer of the winning team with three goals. Drasko Gogov scored three for Novi Beograd.
Radnicki continued its winning streak in domestic competitions, which has lasted for five months. Radnicki hasn’t suffered a loss since October 3. Novi Beograd defeated them 11:8 in the match of the 2nd round
Crvena Zvezda easily beat Banjica and caught up with Novi Beograd in points.
1 Radnicki 11 – 30
2 Novi Beograd 11 – 28 (+90)
3 Crvena Zvezda 11 – 28 (+48)
4 Sabac 11 – 21
5 Vojvodina 11 – 18
6 Partizan 11 – 15
7 Zemun 11 – 10
8 Nais 11 – 8
9 Stari Grad 11 – 2
10 Banjica 11 – 1
2020/21 Croatian League, Day 12
Group I (1st- 6th place)
HAVK Mladost – Mornar 16:5 (4:2, 4:1, 4:2, 4:0 )
Jadran S – Primorje 13:7 (4:2, 1:2, 5:1, 3:2)
Solaris – Jug AO 11:8 (2:1, 4:2, 2:3, 3:2)
Mladost, the Regional league winner, played without a few of the key players but easily defeated Mornar.
The 13th round has been closed today, with an encounter between Solaris and Jug in Sibenik. Title-holder Jug was the heavy favorite, but the visitors couldn’t take a lead in this match. Solaris was almost always in front. Jug equalized just once.
Solaris stunned Jug in the opening minutes. The hosts led 2:0 and 3:1. Two minutes before the middle break, Jug finally equalized – 3:3. But, Solaris answered with three quick goals, and it had a 6:3 lead at halftime. Solaris controlled the match in the third quarter and didn’t let Jug come back. Still, the visitors cut the deficit to two (6:8) before the last period.
Jug’s Daniil Merkulov opened the fourth period with a goal for 7:8. Antun Goreta responded for 9:7. Two and a half minutes before the end, Loren Fatovic scored from a counter-attack and halved the distance for the last time (8:9). Solaris netted two action goals in the last two minutes for a surprising 11:8 victory.
Antun Goreta led Solaris with four goals, while Jerko Penava added three. Loren Fatovic scored three goals for Jug. Toni Popadic, Jug’s goalie, collected 15 saves, but it wasn’t enough for a win. Martin Spadada (Solaris) posted 12 saves.
1 Mladost 11 – 30 (+124)
2 Jug 11 – 30 (+91)
3 Jadran S 11 – 27
4 Primorje 11 – 21
5 Solaris 11 – 18 (+23)
6 Mornar BS 11 – 18 (-10)
Group II (7th – 11th place)
Zadar 1952 – Medvescak 10:20 (3:4, 2:6, 4:6, 1:4)
Galeb MR – KPK Korcula 10:10 (1:1, 2:5, 4:3, 3:1)
POSK bye
7 Medvescak 11 – 12
8 POSK 10 – 9
9 KPK 11 – 7
10 Galeb 11 – 7
11 Zadar 11 – 0
More news about the national water polo competitions in Croatia, Serbia, and Montenegro
