Even though Czechia led for 56 minutes, it was not enough to get the win as the passionate Romanian fans led their favourites to a late second half comeback, a 29:28 win, and two points.
GROUP B
Romania vs Czechia 29:28 (11:13)
- the Czechs held a six-goal lead (5:11) in the 23rd minute, but Romania bounced back and scored six goals to narrow down the difference ahead of the break
- Romanian coach Florentin Pera instructed his defence to start individually marking Markéta Jerábková towards the end of the first half as the Czech playmaker was pulling all the strings on the court
- the Romanian supporters were in full voice for 60 minutes, as they proudly displayed their banners and flags at the Fönix Arena
- Czech goalkeeper Sabrina Novotná made an incredible 20 saves (44 per cent save efficiency) and was deservedly chosen as the Player of the Match, presented by Grundfos
- Charlotte Cholevová scored 11 goals and was the match's top scorer, while Romania's left back Bianca Bazaliu scored nine and was their top scorer
Novotná's masterclass not enough to deny Romania
The 24-year-old Sabrina Novotná made three saves in the opening three minutes of the match, announcing herself on the European stage as she frustrated Romania's attack by recording nine saves with a sky-high 47 per cent of save efficiency at the break.
It did not matter what shot came her way, Novotná simply saved them all and when her teammates were running low on energy, she was there to bring them up with her saves.
However, Novotná could not do it all alone as the Romanians displayed iron will to mount a late second half comeback and take their first lead (27:26) in the 56th minute, which ultimately, decided the final outcome as Pera's squad knew how to keep their lead untouched.
I am really proud about my players, I am really proud about our fighting attitude and the atmosphere inside the team, energy and also I am happy because we have a very young team with a lot of player first time in European championship but I think today we showed like a family.
In the second half we missed five clear chances from six metres. We played good systems, great what we wanted but at the end is about who to be short. You need to score goals, and we missed chances."
