Not surprisingly, Vouliagmeni joined
as the eighth team in the Final Eight – though the Greeks were soundly beaten
by Barceloneta, Recco also downed Jadran and that result sealed Vouliagmeni’s
berth in Belgrade.
Group A: Zodiac CNA Barceloneta (ESP)
v NC Vouliagmeni (GRE) 13-6, Olympiacos Piraeus (GRE) v Dinamo Tbilisi (GEO)
19-10, Pro Recco (ITA) v Jadran Split (CRO) 14-7, Waspo 98 Hannover (GER) v
Radnicki Kragujevac (SRB) 7-12
Standings: 1. Barceloneta 36, 2.
Recco 33, 3. Olympiacos 31, 4. Vouliagmeni 17, 5. Jadran 14, 6. Radnicki 12, 7.
Dinamo 6, 8. Hannover 3
The counting is over: Vouliagmeni
managed to make the cut right upon their first try in the Champions League,
ahead of Jadran Split which once again fell shy of qualifying for the F8,
despite their repeated efforts both in the pool and at the players’ market.
On the penultimate day this outcome
was very much expected – both teams were soundly beaten by the top two ranked
sides respectively, each by seven goals, but Vouliagmeni was the happiest loser
on Saturday as the Greeks went through once Recco finished off Jadran under the
cloudy sky in their outdoor pool at the magnificent Ligurian coastline.
At the same time, Barceloneta are set
to win the group as they face Dinamo on Day 14, a must-win encounter for the
Spaniards. Recco meet Olympiacos, also at home, here the second place will be
at stake – the third position would mean a match-up with F8 host Novi Beograd,
something neither side would go for in the first place perhaps.
Olympiacos also did their homework
against Dinamo, while Hannover were unable to win their last home game either.
Indeed, the Germans’ once feared pool became a playing ground of the visiting
teams as Radnicki was the seventh in the row to leave Hannover with three
points in their bag.
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