Los Angeles Handball Club secured their maiden win at the IHF Men’s Club World Championship and the third win for an American side in their apperances in the competition, dominating Sydney Uni, 28:17.

PLACEMENT MATCHES 9/10
Los Angeles Handball Club (USA) vs Sydney Uni (AUS) 28:17 (12:7)

The new format of the IHF Men’s Club World Championship sees two Preliminary Qualification Matches, with two sides advancing to the Group Phase, while the two teams losing the matches feature in the Placement Matches 9/10, playing twice against each other.

This edition, these two sides were Los Angeles Handball Club and Sydney Uni, as the two teams conceded losses against Zamalek Club and Veszprem HC respectively in the first match, with the battle for avoiding the last place in the final standings being decided in this doubleheader.

On paper, LA looked like the favourites, especially after staying close to Zamalek over the first 20 minutes of their match, and that was reflected in the start of the match, when the American side had a good start, taking a 9:3 lead after 21 minutes.

The charge was led by Slovenia centre back Andraz Velkavrh, who scored 10 goals, followed by right back Hassen Dhouioui, who added five, but Sydney woke up after a slow start and cut the lead to only five goals at the break, 12:7.

The storyline of the second half was more or less the same, with Sydney trying to come back, only for LA to manage the lead carefully around the five-six goals line, as the Australian side continued turning the ball over too many times.

While experienced Danish goalkeeper Frank Krone Mikkelsen had some amazing saves, hovering around the 50% saving efficiency line (13 saves from 30 shots), Sydney Uni turned the ball over 16 times, making it impossible to save something from the match.

With their energy depleted, the Australian side started to falter, and LA used a 5:0 unanswered run to finally decide the match, taking a clear 28:17 win, and heading closer to the ninth place in the competition, which can surely act as a motivation for the future in the team’s development.

The two sides will meet again on Sunday, when the final standings for LA and Sydney Uni will be decided.

Player of the Match: Frank Krone Mikkelsen (Los Angeles Handball Club)