SC Magdeburg made their third consecutive final at the IHF Men’s Super Globe, after a nail-biting 28:24 win against Industria Kielce, securing their 100% record in the semi-finals of the competition.

SEMI-FINAL
SC Magdeburg (GER) vs Industria Kielce (POL) 28:24 (15:14)

Five months ago, SC Magdeburg took a majestic 30:29 win, after extra time, against Industria Kielce, to secure the title in the EHF Champions League Men, in a nail-biting match. Only a few months later, the two sides locked horns once again, with a place in the final of the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe on the line.

Magdeburg were the reigning champions in the competition, having won both their previous semi-finals, while Kielce lost both of the semi-finals they played, in 2016 and 2022, therefore the Polish side had somewhat of a complex in this phase of the competition.

But even without one of their top players, right wing Arkadiusz Moryto, Kielce provided an excellent challenge for Magdeburg, trying to keep up with the excellent German side, which was eyeing their 14th win in 15 matches and their 12th in a row in the competition.

Magdeburg did start better, but it quickly became a battle between the two goalkeepers, Nikola Portner and Andreas Wolff, who traded excellent saves, as the two defences also managed to deliver some excellent performances, stopping the attacks in their tracks in some moments.

Yet it was Magdeburg who were leading throughout the first half, with the score only tied in the start of the match, after the first whistle. The reigning champions also had a 9:5 lead, thanks to a very good performance from Omar Ingi Magnusson and Felix Claar, who combined for eight goals in the first half.

But Kielce managed to stage a comeback, spurred by right back Alex Dujshebaev, who scored four goals in the first half. Yet the Polish side did miss out on some huge chances to tie the game, at 12:11, managing, however, to stay close and limit the damage, with a one-goal gap at the break, 15:14, setting up an exciting second half.

Once again, Magdeburg started better, creating a three-goal lead, 18:15, but Kielce bounced back with their best stint in the match until that moment, a 4:0 unanswered run powered by two goals from Igor Karacic and one from Benoit Kounkoud and Dylan Nahi, prompting Magdeburg’s coach, Bennet Wiegert, to take a time-out.

It was the first time when Kielce took the lead, but that time-out called by Wiegert was taken at the perfect moment and changed the outcome of the match. It instilled the much-needed calm and some clever tweaks in defence, with Sergey Hernandez replacing Portner between the posts.

It also inspired Magdeburg to go on a 7:2 run, which proved to be the pivotal moment of the game, as Omar Ingi Magnusson, Matthias Musche and Felix Claar combined for 16 goals, while Hernandez saved five of the 10 shots he faced, for an incredible 50% saving efficiency, in crunch time.
Magdeburg secured their third consecutive finals berth in the IHF Men’s Super Globe and now have a chance to become the second side in history to three-peat, while Kielce have now lost all the three semi-finals they played, after the 28:24 Magdeburg win.

hummel Player of the Match: Omar Ingi Magnusson (SC Magdeburg)