Qatar 2019 - Day 2 Menâs Preview
12 Oct. 2019
With only the top four in each preliminary group progressing through to the quarter-finals, the second matchday of the menâs beach handball competition at the ANOC World Beach Games â Qatar 2019 will provide answers as to who will be moving on to the next stage of fighting for a medal.
With 12 games across the day, a number of nations will find out their fate, after the conclusion of the final games which throw-off at 1630hrs (local time).Â
Featured Match: Group A â Oman vs United States of America (0950hrs)
The third match in for both the USA and Oman could already be a 4/5 placement match in group A as, along with Australia, these two sides lost both their matches on the first matchday. Oman faced two of three strongest teams in their two 2-0 losses against world champions Brazil and fourth-placed world championship side Sweden.
The US were in touch with both of their opponents, Brazil and European champions Denmark but were eventually beaten comfortably by both in all four periods.
âWe knew Denmark were going to come out strong,â said USAâs pivot Drew Donlin to IHF.info. âThey are coming off of winning the EURO championship and they have a lot of strong players, so we were expecting a tough game.
âAny time you come into a big competition like this, in the first game you always have a few cobwebs no matter how good your training was. We felt we came in prepared, but I think it was a combination of things [that we lost]. Weâve just got to tighten up, but I think those are easy things to improve.â
Donlin was also quick to point out that his side are a real threat, especially in attack. âWeâve got a lot of talented guys in Ebiye (Udo-Udoma), Jacobo (Garcia), Alex (Browne) and Charlie (White) on offence especially,â he said. âWhen one guy does well it opens up other things for other guys and we definitely feed off of each other.
âWeâre still relatively young, but weâve got a lot of talented guys,â he added. âWeâre grateful to be here but we just donât want to âbeâ here, we want to win too. Weâre just going to take this experience today and hopefully build off of it.â
Scandinavian clash could decide group winners, hosts look to make it four wins out of four
The remaining 11 clashes of the day feature a number of intriguing contests with the unbeaten Sweden and Denmark taking on each other in the early morning game in group A, while the European and world champions will play each other away from the central court in the mid-afternoon when Denmark and Brazil face off.
Follow the ANOC World Beach Games â Qatar 2019 HERE.
Match Schedule: Menâs Competition â Saturday 12 October 2019
Morning Session
Group A
0950Â Â Â OMA vs USA
0950Â Â Â SWE vs DEN
0950Â Â Â BRA vs AUS
Group B
1130Â Â Â QAT vs URU
1130Â Â Â HUN vs ESP
1130Â Â Â CRO vs TUN
Afternoon Session
Group A
1450Â Â Â SWE vs USA
1450Â Â Â DEN vs BRA
1450Â Â Â AUS vs OMA
Group B
1630Â Â Â TUN vs QAT
1630Â Â Â ESP vs CRO
1630Â Â Â HUN vs URU