The Hungarian side has won four out of their six finals so far and will face the winner of the second semi-final, between Metz Handball and SG BBM Bietigheim, trying to clinch their sixth title in the European premium competition.
SEMI-FINAL
Team Esbjerg (DEN) vs Györi Audi ETO KC (HUN) 23:24 (9:13)
- an aggressive approach from Esbjerg, who used a seven-on-six attack throughout the second half, helped the Danish side cut the deficit from six goals at 12:18 to a single goal with 50 seconds to go, but Györ stood their ground
- searching for her maiden title in the EHF Champions League Women, Györ’s goalkeeper Sandra Toft had a fantastic outing, saving 12 shots for a 37.5 per cent saving efficiency, including a last-second save facing Sanna Solberg-Isaksen
- Györ left back Estelle Nze Minko was the top scorer for the Hungarian side, with six goals, while Nora Mørk and Henny Reistad combined for 11 goals for Esbjerg
- in their third consecutive appearance in the EHF FINAL4, Esbjerg are still searching for their first win, losing five matches in a row
- this is Györ’s ninth appearance in the final of the EHF Champions League Women in the past 12 editions, with the Hungarian side having the most consistent streak in the history of the competition
Superb Toft saves Györ
When Esbjerg threw off the match with a 3:0 run, prompting a timeout from Györ head coach Per Johansson, it looked like the Danish side were onto something. But then Györ roared back, using a 5:0 unanswered run to turn the match on its head. Esbjerg did not pull back, albeit with a quiet outing in the first half from superstar left back Henny Reistad, who scored her first goal in the 29th minute, taking back the lead, 8:7, after 23 minutes.
It was the last time when Esbjerg were really in with a chance of winning the semi-final, especially as Györ’s defence started working. With a fantastic outing of goalkeeper Sandra Toft, who constantly frustrated her opponents, the Hungarian side built a 11:4 run, which saw them take their first six-goal lead at 18:12.
After scoring four of her team’s first six goals, Nora Mørk went quiet and added only two more goals. Reistad, the all-time top goal scorer of the EHF FINAL4, finished the match with five goals, carrying her team in the second half, when Esbjerg usually had a seven-on-six approach in attack.
But Györ would not have made it without Toft’s heroics. The Hungarian side lost possession with six seconds to go and Esbjerg went on the fast break, only for Toft to stop a one-on-one situation with Sanna Solberg-Isaksen in the last second, to lift Györ to another final.
Photos © Kolektiff Images
We just have to settle for playing for third place but that takes nothing from Györ, they deserved as much as we did. Two amazing teams, what a clash, so we should be proud for our handball. This is an extreme high level and the best players in the world so I hope a lot of children can be emotional about these matches and the players on the court
It was a crazy game. I think both teams wanted it so much and you can see it on us. We had a really tough start of the first half, but after that we really raised our level, and we finished the half time in a good way.
