CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TEAM FACE THE FINAL HURDLE

This weekend will see the conclusion of the group matches in the Women’sChampions League and the decision regarding the qualification for thequarterfinals.

As there are still plenty of unanswered questions about the finaloutcome, here is a summary of the four groups.

Group A

The race for rank 1 and 2 was decided last Saturday in Dunaujvaros, whenDunaferr could only settle for a 25:25 draw with Ikast. This result left theDanish side on top of the group with 2 points ahead and the better results inthe direct encounters against Dunaferr. Consequently the Danish side will go tothe quarterfinals as the group winner regardless of the results still to comethis weekend, while Dunaferr will remain on 2^nd place in any case.

Buducnost Podgorica and Astroc Sagunto are in a close fight for rank 3and the qualification for the Cupwinners’ Cup. Both teams are levelled on 2points with Sagunto having the better goal difference in the two direct matchesafter they Christina Mayo’s team just barely defended the five goal differencefrom their home match in January Sunday night in Podgorica. Buducnost thereforehas to get at least one point in Dunaferr’s hall on Saturday afternoon and, atthe same time, Sagunto would have to lose their home match against Ikast.

Group B

Anything is still possible in group B as all three teams HypoNiederösterreich, Viborg and Volgograd can still finish on any rank from 1 to3. Nordstrand, however, will finish its international campaign on Saturday forthis season as there is no possibility anymore to leave rank 4.

Interestingly enough, the best cards to win the group are not in thehands of the current leader Hypo Niederösterreich, but much more in hands ofViborg HK. They are the clear favourites at home against Nordstrand and a winin this match on Saturday afternoon will put pressure on the group leader HypoNiederösterreich, who needs a positive result in Volgograd on Sunday in orderto stay on top of the group. An interesting situation will occur in the case ofViborg beating Nordstrand and Volgograd winning at home against HypoNiederösterreich as all three teams would end up with 8 points in total andfour points from the direct encounters among them. Viborg has a +10 goaldifference in their favour from these matches and would most probably take thefirst spot. If Hypo Niederösterreich will actually lose in Volgograd, they areonly allowed to lose by 7 seven goals in order to stay on rank 2 and stillremain in the Champions League. A “hot” match in the cold winter of Volgogradis therefore to be expected!

Group C and D

As a consequence of last weekend’s results, group C is decided from thepoint of view of the qualification for the quarterfinals. Kometal Skopje anddefending Champions Slagelse are qualified for the quarterfinals of theChampions League, while Lada Togliatti will go to the Cupwinners Cup.

However, the order of the ranking on top of the group is still undecidedas Slagelse will be host to Kometal on Sunday afternoon in Bröndby-Hallen inCopenhagen. Since both teams are currently standing at eight points, thisdirect encounter will decide the final positions in the group. Kometaldefenitely has positive memories from the first match in Skopje, where theMacedonians clearly had the better end by 20:12. The outcome of Sunday’s gameis very important as the qualified teams from the corresponding group D arealready in standby positions: Last year’s Champions League runners-up KrimLjubljana are the winner of group D and will meet the loser of Slagelse-Kometal.The Spanish team of Elda Prestigio reached the Champions league quarterfinalsfor the first time ever and will have to play against the winner of theSlagelse against Kometal match. Bearing in mind the win from the home game inSkopje,.a draw in Copenhagen would put Skopje on first place.

The race for rank 3 in Group D and the qualification for the CupwinnersCup is still open and the decision will come in Bergen/NOR on Saturdayafternoon. The guests from DIN Nis/SCG with topscorer Liljana Knezevic (46 goalsin five matches) have to win by at least two goals in order to finish on thirdplace. Any other outcome will qualify Tertnes for the Cupwinners Cup.

Text: EHF