Braila advance to round 3, THC and Molde have one foot in the door
The inaugural season of the European League Women, the new second-tier continental club competition, threw off at the weekend with four qualification round 2 games.
In the only double-header, played in Romania, the local team H.C. Dunărea Brăila narrowly defeated Norway’s Tertnes Bergen.
- on Saturday, Braila won the first leg 28:26, and Bergen’s 26:25 revenge on the following day was not enough for their Norwegian rivals
- Serbian right back Marina Dmitrovic made the biggest impact at Braila, scoring six goals on Saturday and eight on Sunday
- two other clashes on Saturday were first leg matches, with the second leg to be played next weekend
- another double-header will also take place next weekend, between Paris 92 and IUVENTA Michalovce
- the round 2 winners will join 20 other teams in qualification round 3, to be played on 14/15 and 21/22 November
Thüringer HC, Molde have decisive first-leg wins
While Braila are already through, THC made a massive step towards the next round, winning 39:24 at WAT Atzgersdorf, so the second leg match should be a mere formality.
Similar to Atzgersdorf, another Austrian side Hypo Niederösterreich are on the brink of leaving the tournament. A 28:19 defeat at Molde HK Elite gives the four-time EHF Champions League winners just a marginal chance for a strong comeback.
On Saturday, it was the centre back Anniken Obaidli who led by example at Molde, scoring 11 goals from 13 shots.
