Al-Ahly opened their account at the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe in style, with a dominating performance against hosts Al-Noor, taking a clear 38:20 win, after a superb defensive effort, which saw the Saudi side stopped in their tracks.

GROUP A
Al-Ahly (EGY) vs Al-Noor (KSA) 38:20 (16:12)

Buoyed by the fourth place sealed in the previous edition of the IHF Men’s Super Globe, Al-Ahly aimed for another good performance in this edition, and they were coming in hot, after winning the 2023 African Handball Super Cup and the 2023 CAHB African Men’s Handball Championship this year.

The Egyptian side were favoured against Saudi side Al-Noor, which were making their comeback in the competition after a one-year hiatus, but did not look to have the experience or firepower to exert the needed pressure on Al-Ahly.

The start was exactly what Al-Ahly envisioned, with right wing Omar Dahroug scoring three times to lift the Egyptian powerhouse to a 5:1 lead, with the defence taking the lion’s share, as Al-Noor were stopped in their tracks. Backed by a core of nearly 500 fans, Al-Ahly were soon in trouble, though, as Al-Noor used their own 4:0 run to tie the game.

Three goals from left wing Ahmed Hesham soon turned the game on its head again, as Al-Ahly used a 5:0 run between the 16th and the 21st minutes to take a commanding 12:7 lead, which proved to be unassailable at the end of the match.

By half-time, the Egyptian side had a 16:12 lead, yet another 11:2 run, spurred by a flurry of fast breaks, coming after excellent steals in defence, helped David Davis’ side widen the gap, 25:14, with 16 minutes to go, which saw Al-Noor take a time-out.

It did not help, as the attacking woes continued, with the turnovers piling for the Saudi side, as Al-Ahly completed a flawless performance, feeding from the excellent steals in defence and the converted fast breaks, as 13 of the 16 players on the scoresheet had at least one goal under the name. Moreover, Al-Ahly also scored nine goals on fast breaks, nearly a quarter of their total of goals in the match.

Goalkeepers Mohamed Ibrahim (nine saves for a 53% save efficiency), who was awarded the hummel Player of the Match award and Abdelrahman Taha (seven saves for a 37% save efficiency) added more for Al-Ahly, which eventually cruised to a 38:20 win, as the Egyptian side proved once again they are a strong side, deserving to be here, between the top clubs in the world, at the IHF Men’s Super Globe.

The two sides will now face Barça, the most decorated team in the history of the IHF Men’s Super Globe, with the Spanish powerhouse and Al-Ahly promising a hugely entertaining mutual match on Thursday.

hummel Player of the Match: Mohamed Ibrahim (Al-Ahly)