Handball
Third game, third win: THW Kiel wins in Bitola
Coach Filip Jicha and THW Kiel won at HC Eurofarm Pelister in North Macedonia. photo
© David Inderlied/dpa
The German handball record champion THW Kiel remains undefeated in the preliminary round of the Champions League. The 23:20 (11:9) against North Macedonian champions HC Eurofarm Pelister from the city of Bitola was the third victory in the third game for THW coach Filip Jicha’s team.
With five goals each, Kiel’s Niclas Ekberg and Elias Ellefsen á Skipagötu as well as former Bundesliga player Bogdan Radivojevic were the best throwers of the game for the hosts.
In the first competitive game ever between the two teams, the Kiel team initially failed to pull away. Although the North Germans took the lead with 5:3 (12th minute) and 10:7 (27th), the hosts, who had clearly lost their first two games, always managed to catch up. The THW lacked penetration, especially on the offensive.
The picture was similar in the second half. Kiel presented, Bitola stayed in contact. In the 42nd minute the North Macedonians equalized again at 16:16. But then Ekberg made it 22:19 (52nd) for the THW with a converted seven-meter penalty, Domagoj Duvnjak with a hit into the empty goal and Ellefsen á Skipagötu. Although the North Germans only managed one goal in the remaining eight minutes of the game, it was enough to win.