Italy
enjoyed a brilliant week as Brescia and Ortigia won the respective groups in
the Champions League qualifications and joined the main round. The restart of
LEN action in the pool couldn’t have been any more exciting and vibrant as the
teams produced outstanding battles in Siracusa (ITA) and in Budapest (HUN).
Host Ortigia
made history by finishing atop in Siracusa and qualifying to the Champions
League for the first time. They beat Mladost (CRO) in a thrilling match to grab
the first place in Group A.
The Italians
jumped to a 4-2 lead but Mladost came back to even by half-time and went ahead
in the third. Ortigia could score after a silence of 11:26 minutes for 6-6
early in the fourth but Konstantin Kharkov put the Croats ahead once again with
5:56 remaining. The hosts netted two action goals in 50 seconds, then Luka
Bajic equalised for 8-8 and there were still 3:51 minutes to play. With only 42
seconds left of the clock, Massimo Giacoppo netted the winner from an extra,
which sent the Italians to the Champions League.
Ortigia
staged a nice run in the prelims, though after decisive wins over Steaua (ROU)
and Jadran Split (CRO), they had to dig deep to beat Barcelona (ESP) 5-3, then
in the last round they drew with Primorac (MNE) to clinch the first place. One
of the protagonists in Ortigia’s big march was veteran goalie Stefano Tempesti.
Aged 41, the world champion and Olympic silver medallist legend did a truly
remarkable job in the goal.
The big game
of this phase came in the other group where both Mladost and Szolnok (HUN) beat
Pays d’Aix (FRA) in tight matches before facing off each other. It became an
absolute thriller where Mladost seemed to be a sure bet as they built a solid
four-goal lead by half-time and held on before the last break for 16-12. But
the Hungarians, considered the favourites here, staged an outstanding comeback
to level the score at 17-17 with 1:03 remaining. However, Andro Buslje netted a
fine action goal from the next possession and Szolnok’s equaliser came too late
(18-18), six seconds before the end. Since Mladost’s goal-difference was one
better, they could play the final.
On the
contrary, Brescia breathed through the tournament in Budapest. The Italians,
regular Final 8 participants between 2016 and 2018, had two easy matches
against Oradea (ROU) and Vouliagmeni (GRE), before taking on Radnicki (SRB) for
the first place.
Brescia left
nothing to chance and stormed to a 0-3 lead in less than four minutes and led
by five at halftime (3-8). Still, the players from Kragujevac were never in
give-in mood and two goals inside the last 50 seconds in the third gave them
some slim hope before the final period (6-9). They could have got even closer
but missed a 6 on 5 at 7-10 and Brescia netted their next with exactly five
minutes from time for 7-11 and that virtually ended the battle – the difference
remained till the end, in fact.
All credits
go to the Serbs, though, who didn’t stop causing surprises during the week. The
once feared team – runner-up in 2014, but fading in recent years – came back to
the European stage with a fine line-up of experienced players and upcoming
youngsters and they fought their way through in the most balanced sub-group of
the tournaments.
Their opener
was already a huge match as they came back from four goals down against Sintez
(RUS) with a 7-goal rush in the third and claimed a 16-14 win at the end. A bit
surprisingly, they dropped points against Tourcoing (FRA) on Day 2 in the morning
(7-7) but bounced back with a great 13-8 win over Terrassa (ESP) in the evening
session. Then came the decisive match against host OSC where a penalty-save at
5-6 put the Serbs back on track and at 9-7 they seemed to have it. The
Hungarians had a late surge through, netted two in the last 90 seconds and had
a shot to win the match but it was denied and the draw favoured Radnicki since
OSC had lost to Terrassa in the previous day. However, this win came at a cost
as head coach Uros Stevanovic got a red card and had to watch the final game
from the tribune – which might also have had an effect on the outcome against
Brescia.
Both
tournaments were played without spectators and saw strict regulations in place.
Teams were tested on-site before the start and were kept in a bubble for the
whole duration of the events, together with all LEN Officials.
The main
round in the Champions League is to kick off on 14 December, games will be
played in three stages at tournaments held in ‘bubble’ format. Group A will
visit Ostia (ITA), while Group B games are to be contested in Budapest (HUN).
In December, three rounds shall be played in as many days at both venues.
As for teams
ranked 2nd through 8th in the qualifications, they will continue in the Euro
Cup. The draw for the prelims of this latter competition is to be held on
Tuesday, in the LEN Office in Nyon.
Champions
League, Qualifications
Final rankings
Group A 1. CC Ortigia (ITA), 2. HAVK Mladost Zagreb (CRO), 3. Szolnoki
Dozsa (HUN), 4. CN Barcelona (ESP), 5. Jadran Split (CRO), 6. Pays d’Aix (FRA),
7. Primorac Kotor (MNE), 8. Steaua Bucharest (ROU). NC Ydraikos (GRE): DSQ
Final:
Ortigia v Mladost 9-8
Group
B 1. AN Brescia (ITA), 2. Radnicki Kragujevac (SRB), 3. MOL-OSC Budapest
(HUN), 4. Vouliagmeni (GRE), 5. Sintez Kazan (RUS), 6. CSM DiGi Oradea (ROU),
7. CN Terrassa (ESP), 8. EN Tourcoing (FRA). Enka Istanbul (TUR): DSQ.
Final:
Radnicki v Brescia 9-13
Main Round –
composition of the groups
Group
A Olympiacos Piraeus (GRE), Pro Recco (ITA), Jug Adriatic Osiguranje
Dubrovnik (CRO), Spandau 04 Berlin (GER), CN Marseille (FRA), CC Ortigia (ITA)
Group
B FTC-Telekom Budapest (HUN), Zodiac Atletic Barceloneta (ESP), Waspo 98
Hannover (GER), Jadran Herceg Novi (MNE), Dinamo Tbilisi (GEO), AN Brescia
(ITA)
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