Netherlands extended their unbeaten streak at Spain 2021 to four games, with a hard-fought win against Romania, 31:30, despite their attacking woes, who helped Romania keep the game close throughout the whole game.

Romania’s future in the competition is virtually decided, as Adrian Vasile’s side need a miracle to still hope for a quarter-final berth.

MAIN ROUND GROUP II
Netherlands vs Romania 31:30 (17:14)

Starting the main round with a win was paramount for Romania’s chances to proceed to the quarter-finals, with a win against reigning champions the Netherlands being a must for Adrian Vasile’s side.

But their recent head-to-head record was not encouraging for Romania, who had lost four games in a row against the Netherlands side, including a 24:35 drubbing at the Women’s EHF EURO 2020 last December.

However, the Netherlands were not at their best in the first part of the game, with their superb attacking performance of the first three games, when they scored 144 goals, faltering against a sturdy Romanian defence.

A flurry of turnovers and costly misses helped Romania take a 7:5 lead, with centre back Cristina Laslo excelling in attack, where she scored four of her team’s first goals. Yet, Romania were too eager to prove they knew how to play fast and attractive handball, something that is currently not in their DNA.

And when turnovers started to pile for Romania – eight of them in the first half – Netherlands started to take advantage. Seven of their 17 goals in the first 30 minutes came via fast breaks, with left wing Bo van Wetering leading the charge with five goals.

Slowly, but surely, the Netherlands opened a three-goal gap (17:14) and from that moment on, they were not looking back.

While their efficiency was surely high throughout the game (63%), coach Monique Tijsterman will surely need to tinker with her line-up more, as the defending world champions failed to get any clear solutions in attack.

However, the sheer amount of big mistakes from the Romanian team, such as passes sent directly to the opponent, with turnovers lost by backs Bianca Harabagiu and Madalina Zamfirescu helped the Netherlands open a 22:16 gap, the biggest of the game.

Yet, the Netherlands were clearly missing something, a true spark in their game, despite being in the lead. And this is exactly what helped Romania get back into the match.

Surprisingly, with coach Adrian Vasile going all-in in the last minutes of the game, taking out the goalkeeper to create a seven-on-six attacking superiority, Romania managed to tie the game at 29:29, with three minutes to go.

But, eventually, the Netherlands rode their experience and depth to the win, as Romania’s right wing Laura Moisa missed two one-on-one chances with Netherlands goalkeeper Tess Wester, as the Netherlands sealed a crucial 31:30 win.

The Netherlands continue to remain unbeaten in their title-defending campaign, boasting three wins and a draw in their first four matches, before another must-win game against Kazakhstan, where they will be heavily favoured. Monique Tijsterman’s side now have five points in the standings, one more than Norway and two more than Sweden, with the two Scandinavian teams having a game in hand.

On the other side, Romania stay in the race for a quarter-final berth only virtually, as they need to win against Puerto Rico and Sweden and rely on other results to come their way in the next games.

hummel Player of the Match: Crina Pintea, Romania

Photo: RFEBM / Á. Bermejo