Valentin Kieffer (Saran Loiret HB)
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While Pontault, again affected by the Covid-19, did not play, Saran made up for Tuesday’s draw against Valence with a large victory against the same opponent (26-39). At home, Cherbourg conceded a draw against the relegated Sarrebourg. Massy, Dijon and Sélestat won.
As written after the day of this midweek, in Proligue, we are approaching the end of the championship, but a vagueness dominates on the consequences of the classification for the protagonists. In this abnormal season, without a spectator, when the N1 championship is suspended and the two VAP clubs will therefore go up without playing more than five games, let’s once again as if nothing had happened and let’s talk about the fight for maintenance, even if the descents would seem cruel for teams which defended themselves and which would be replaced by clubs which did not have to play to go up. The reality, however, is never far away: two matches were postponed due to Covid this weekend, the opposition between Angers and Nancy and the one between Pontault-Combault and Strasbourg.
Saran, winning return
Théo Avelange Demouge (Saran Loiret HB) / Photo credit: Kevin Domas / Panoramic
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As if nothing had happened, therefore, Saran found Valence for a second clash in a week between the two teams. “I was apprehensive about this trip, and I wanted to see a revengeful team”, said Fabien Courtial after this second meeting at the microphone of Mistral TV. Saran took the lead early in the game, but was caught by a team from Valencia who kept pace. After twenty minutes of play, the score is equal (11-11, 20 ‘). But the Valentinois won at the end of the first period by conceding a 4-0, caused by loss of ball on the VHB side (12-16, 28 ‘). Led by four goals at the break (13-17, 30 ‘), Valencia gradually collapsed in the second period. Led by six goals after a numerical inferiority (16-22, 37 ‘), the VHB recovered before going then almost ten minutes without scoring (18-22, 39’; 19-28, 48 ‘). Théo Avelange-Demouge (10 goals) and the Gauthier-Kieffer pair in the goals (10 saves for Gauthier, 6 for Kieffer including a 3/3 at 7m) hurt the Drômois in particular.
Fabien Courtial (Saran Loiret HB)
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Saran then won the match, but has fun offensively in the last ten minutes to achieve wider success (26-39). “I knew the values of Valencia, and I think they were a bit cooked tonight, it’s hard to play twice in a row like that, underlined Courtial. We hoped that the point they had taken from us costs them physically, I think they fell for it. “ The Saranais take advantage of this success and the fact that Pontault has not played to regain first place in the championship. “I’m happy, because we come back first, and when we come to the end of a championship, we have the impression that the points count even more, Courtial concluded to Mistral TV. I was disappointed that we did not finish the game on Tuesday, and I am very happy that we won widely. “ The catching up of the match against Angers, scheduled for next Tuesday, may give Saran the opportunity to take two new capital points in the race to climb.
Massy takes over Nice and gets closer to the play-offs
Jeremy Roussel (Massy Essonne HB)
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In the fight for the play-offs, the quest for fourth place – which would offer a return match at home – promises to be tight for the end of the championship. At the same time, the hole seems to have been made on the pursuers. That was the whole point of the opposition between Massy, fifth, and Nice, seventh and therefore the first pursuer behind the qualifying places for the play-offs. The two teams delivered a balanced game at the start of the first period, before Cavigal gained the upper hand by depriving the MEHB of a goal for seven minutes (7-6, 15 ‘; 7-11, 22’). But Massy almost made up for lost time before the break (12-13, 30 ‘). The locals manage to hamper their opponent with a big defense. Jeremy Roussel, the Lions coach, can sum up the performance in one sentence: “Nice are an attacking team, and we brought them to a defensive game. “ Fifteen minutes from the end, Massy takes two goals for the first time (20-18, 45 ‘). Nice resisted, survived with one or two goals, before cracking at the end of the game (23-22, 55 ‘; 26-22, 58’).
Asier Antonio (Nice)
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With in particular eight goals from Edson Imare but above all a big collective performance, Massy won against a good team from Nice (28-25). “I really like this Nice team, it’s a team that has a great tactical mastery, which manages the rhythms well, which has a lot of variety in the game, and we were rightly afraid of it, greeted Roussel at the end of the meeting. We win with usury, because when the defense is in place, it wears out, but not that, because offensively, we have found the actions. It was an interesting game, as always with Nice. I am very happy that we have chained these three victories in a row in one week, with injuries. “ With this success, Massy is now five points ahead of Nice and, while eight points remain to be taken, has almost reached the goal of the play-offs. “We have a foot in the play-offs, and we have four games left to put the second. But finishing the job is the hardest part ”, underlined Roussel. For his part, Asier Antonio considered that he “Missed a lot of things” to his team to win. “But I am very proud of my players, normally it was not planned to play this place, he reminded. We will play until the last day of the season our opportunity to place as high as possible in the standings. “
Dijon puts pressure on Cherbourg, held in check by Sarrebourg
Photo credit: Panoramic
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At the same time, Dijon and Billere were in the same configuration as Saran and Valence: the two teams, which faced each other in Béarn on Tuesday, were face to face again on Friday, this time in Côte-d’Or. While the first leg was tight and turned to the advantage of the Billérois, the return was no less unbalanced, but this time shifted to the DMH side. The Burgundians put themselves in the best shape at the start of the game with a large gap acquired after twenty minutes of play (12-6, 21 ‘) and still five goals ahead at the break (15-10, 30’ ). But Billère returned from the locker room with good intentions and also took advantage of four exclusions on the Dijon side in fifteen minutes to pick up the score (18-18, 45 ‘). But at the end of the match, Dijon, again in full force, is more precise (8 ball losses recorded in the match on the Dijon side, against 14 in Billère), and despite the good performance of Joris Labro (14 saves), Dijon resumed the game. above at the end of the meeting. Billère no longer has the opportunity to come back … except in the last ten seconds, but does not manage to shoot (27-26). With this success, Dijon remains fifth with Massy, also widens the gap on Nice, and comes back to one point from fourth place.
Chérubin Tabanguet and Kristian Orsted (Cherbourg). Photo: TATOF / Christophe Portat
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Beaten on his last two outings, Cherbourg looking for a new breath and hoped to find it against Sarrebourg, last of the championship. But the Mosellans, now dropped in the standings, have nothing to lose and are playing their luck. They put Cherbourg in difficulty from the start (4-7, 11 ‘) before suffering the Norman lightning: the Mauves scored eleven goals in thirteen minutes (15-10, 24’). Sarrebourg manages to recover before the break (18-15, 30 ‘), then sticks together and even passes in front in the middle of the second period (21-22, 44’). Although the JS then returned to the front, the game in Cherbourg was very confused in this second period, and the hands were shaking in the last five minutes. Sarrebourg returns, and, outnumbered, takes the advantage fifteen seconds from the end on a kung fu concluded beautifully by Lucas Hubert with a shot in the back. The JS saves the draw on the wire: Jonas Burud finds the post, but Robin Dupont-Marion recovers the ball and scores on the siren (30-30). Cherbourg saved the draw on the wire and kept a minimal lead over Massy and Nice. Sarrebourg, for his part, can be satisfied with his match. Officially, the Mosellans are not officially relegated.
Sélestat smiles again
Gregoire Plat (Sélestat Alsace HB)
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After a five-game losing streak, Selestat managed to break the vicious circle by receiving Besancon. The Bisontins, twelve in Alsace and private during the game of David Eponouh and Thibaud Arteaga (the latter came out on injury to the 39e minute after scoring his ninth goal of the evening), clearly lacked the juice to hold out against his opponent over time. Sélestat started his match well (11-5, 17 ‘), and Besançon then had to fight to come back. Led by three goals at the break (18-15, 30 ‘), the GBDH cracks in the middle of the second period, after the exit of Arteaga (22-20, 39’; 28-21, 46 ‘). Sélestat, notably carried by Thibaud Valentin (8 goals) and Grégoire Plat (7 goals), wins clearly and logically (37-30) and passes in front of his weekend opponent in the standings.
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Mickaël Georgeault
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