Hosts Cameroon stayed undefeated, dominating their opponents, and secured the tittles in both the junior (U20) and the youth (U18) categories in this year’s Men’s IHF Trophy– Africa Zone IV, which took place between 28 April and 2 May in Douala.

Five teams entered the competition in the junior competition, which was, therefore, played in a round robin format, with Cameroon taking four wins out of four matches, as the battle for the podium places was intense.

In the first day of competition, Cameroon jumped to an early statement of intent victory, dominating Chad, 44:30, while their main rivals for the title, Congo, also clinched a big win, 50:18, against Gabon.

Cameroon then continued with a clear 39:14 win over Gabon, while Congo had a rest day, and the Central African Republic opened their account with a 36:29 win over Chad.

Congo tied Cameroon on points in the third day, with a 39:27 win over the Central African Republic, while Chad broke their duck with a 37:24 win over Gabon, as Cameroon had a rest day, before their showdown against Congo.

Congo needed a win to keep their hopes alive, but were properly dominated by Cameroon, which had solved the equation even after a few minutes, taking a 17:6 lead at the break. In the second half, Cameroon never relented and jumped to a 36:20 win.

Therefore, Cameroon were already champions before the last match and they still delivered a 23:15 win against the Central African Republic, while Congo sealed a 44:28 win over Chad to secure the second place.

The Central African Republic finished third, with four points, two more than Chad, while Gabon ended up on the last place.

The Central African Republic’s Gabin Mokoye was the top scorer of the competition, with 38 goals, followed by Gabon’s Mangari Dan Caleb, with 34 goals, and Congo’s Justin Mbani Mpika, with 28 goals.

In the youth competition, six teams entered the fray, therefore the format was different: two groups of three teams each, with the top two teams in each group progressing to the semi-finals.

Once again, a battle between Congo and Cameroon emerged, the two teams winning their groups with two wins in two matches. However, Congo looked to have the upper side, after outscoring their two opponents, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, 110:27.

First, Congo took a 65:10 win over Gabon, topping it with a 47:15 win against the Equatorial Guinea, which finished second, thanks to their 42:24 win against Gabon.

Cameroon did not have any issues against the Central African Republic, 33:20, and against Chad, 31:19, with the second semi-finalist from Group B being the Central African Republic, which won 38:26 against Chad.

However, Congo had more issues in the semi-final against the Central African Republic, where they went behind by four goals in the first half, 5:9, only tying the score at the break, 15:15. However, starting the second half with a 10:4 run enabled them to clinch a 30:26 win, as Genov Opera and Ulrich Mougougou Edoh combined for 15 goals between them.

Cameroon totally outplayed the Equiatorial Guinea, 47:24, to set up a final against Congo, where they led from start to finish, but by no more than six goals. After a 20:17 lead at the break, Cameroon took a 34:29 win, never letting their opponents tie the score.

In the bronze medal match, the Central African Republic took a 32:23 win over the Equatorial Guinea, while Chad finished fifth, with a 42:14 win against Gabon.

Central African Republic’s Emmanuel Messang was the top scorer, with 32 goals, while Seferino Beata Diote and Martin Ndong Ngamaleu Nchama scored 29 goals each for the Equatorial Guinea.

Both the junior and the youth Cameroon teams qualified for the Continental Phase of the Men’s IHF Trophy.