EHFCL Round 2 Recap: Big win for Vardar on the home court

Vardar

Second round of the EHF Champions League has brought many surprises for the SEHA clubs. The most successful team were reigning European and SEHA champions who continued their winning streak with a victory against Porto Sofarma. 

Group C: IK Savehof – Eurofarm Rabotnik 25:24 (10:15)
Team from Bitola, Eurofarm Rabotnik opened the EHF Champions League round 2 with a tight defeat against IK Savehof. In their first away appearance, Eurofarm Rabotnik showed incredible strength on the court in the first 30 minutes of the match. They had a dream opening and were up by 5 goals on half-time. But, the 43rd minute was unfortunate for them as that was when the home team managed to tie the result and soon after get in the lead. Pride of Bitola tried hard to come back and win precious points, but were unable to make that happen in the end. Brilliant centre back, Lovro Jotic netted 8 times for the guest team, and Milan Djukic scored 4 goals. On the other side, Stefan Sunajko and Sebastian Karlsson both netted 5 times for the winning team. 

Group B: Telekom Veszprem – THW Kiel 31:37 (13:16) 
After incredible victory in the first round, Telekom Veszprem did not continue the winning streak in the next round. Hungarian champions were defeated on the home court against THW Kiel 31:37. The guests opened the match more efficiently and had 0:3 advantage in the second minute. They were in the lead the whole first half, and as the time went by, their advantage was only getting bigger. Andreas Nilsson and Omar Yahia stood out in Veszprem's team as they were the best scorers with 5 goals each. Harald Reinkind was the best scorer in Kiel's team with 8 goals. Nikola Bilyk and Hendrik Pekeler both netted 7 times for the guest team. 

Group B: Meshkov Brest – Montpellier HB 25:27 (13:12)
Another well known SEHA name did not manage to secure points on the home court. French Montpellier were better than Meshkov Brest 27:25. This match was almost identical as the one in the first round when Belarusian champions were in the lead for the most part of the match, but in the end guests took over the lead and won. Eight minutes before the end of the second half, Montpellier made a turnover and got in the lead. After that, Meshkov Brest didn't have a chance to turn the result into their favour. Marko Panic and Darko Djukic were the best scorers in the home team with 6 goals each. On the other side, Melvyn Richardson netted 6 times for Montpellier while Valentin Porte scored 5 goals. 

Group C: Sporting CP – Tatran Presov 32:24 (17:14)
Slovakian champions, Tatran Presov also didn't have much luck in the second round. They were defeated in their first guest appearance 32:24 against Portugese team Sporting CP. By the end of the first half, Sporting had a three goals advantage which was only getting bigger as the second half started. Lukas Urbas and Javier Munoz Cabezon both netted 5 times for Tatran Presov. Frankis Carol Marzo with 5 goals alongside Carlos Ruesga Pasarin and Luis Frade with 4 goals each carried the home time through this match.  

Group A: Aalborg Handbold – PPD Zagreb 30:20 (13:11)
Danish team Aalborg Handbold were better than PPD Zagreb on the home court 30:20. Croatian champions were holding good for the whole first half of the match, and even managed to get only one goal away from the draw at the start of the second half. But after that, the home team stepped up their game while PPD Zagreb didn't score a single goal for 15 minutes. As a result, Aalborg were up by 11 goals at a time. The biggest disadvantage for PPD Zagreb were the red cards that Darko Stojnic and David Mandic got in the second half. The best scorer for the winning team was incredible Sebastian Barthold who netted 12 times, while Matej Hrstic with 5 goals and Filip Vistorop with 4 goals were the best scorers in PPD Zagreb's squad. 

Group B: Vardar – Porto Sofarma 32:27 (14:16)
Reigning European and SEHA champions, Vardar secured important victory against Porto Sofarma on the home court. Even though the guests were in the lead by the end of the first half, Vardar had a great opening of the second half. They got in the lead in the 32nd minute and dominated on the court for the rest of the match. Dainis Kristopans and Ivan Cupic both scored unbelievable 7 goals for Vardar, while Diogo Branquinho netted 6 times for Porto. 

Group B: PGE Vive Kielce – Motor Zaporozhye 33:26 (22:11)
Ukrainian champions Motor Zaporozhye didn't manage to secure their first points in the EHF Champions League. PGE VIVE Kielce dominated during the whole match and were better at the end with the result 33:26. From the very beginning the home squad showed that they have intentions to win this match. Motor Zaporozhye were doing their best on the court, but this time it wasn't enough for the victory. The best scorers in Motor team were Barys Pukhouski and Stevan Vujovic with 5 goals each while Artsem Karalek netted 6 times for PGE VIVE Kielce.