Odense earn first home points
In the DELO EHF Champions League 2021/22 season, Odense Håndbold had claimed two away wins but lost in Denmark against Metz Handball and Györi Audi ETO KC.
On Sunday, Ulrik Kirkely's team finally won on home court in group B as they defeated Krim Mercator Ljubljana 26:24.
GROUP B
Odense Håndbold (DEN) vs Krim Mercator Ljubljana (SLO) 26:24 (13:10)
- Odense took a 3:0 lead early in the match before Tjaša Stanko scored Krim's first goal in the seventh minute
- the Danish side led 13:7 in the 25th minute before three unanswered goals helped Krim to close the gap at half-time
- by the 53rd minute, the home team led 25:20, and although the visitors again cut the deficit, Odense weathered the storm and won by two goals
- 10 players scored for the winners – and Bo van Wetering was the best with five goals. Tjaša Stanko netted seven times for Krim
- Odense climbed to third place in the group with six points, while Krim, who stay on two points, slipped to seventh position
Reinhardt stood like a wall
Overall, it was a good team performance from Odense, but goalkeeper Althea Reinhardt stood out with her total of 17 saves in the match.
The 25-year-old Danish goalkeeper also had a big impact in the crucial moments. Her two saves in the last 30 seconds of the match helped her team to maintain a 26:24 score.
We knew it would be a hard game today, and they showed us if we are not ready and 100 per cent focused they are hard to beat. The teams in our group are really close, so it was two really important points for us today.
It went up and down for us today, but we got the seven-against-six play under control in the second half which helped us keep Krim behind us. It was a really tough game, so it was perfect with two points and we are satisfied with the victory.
