Two years ago, they were defeated by Tunisia in the preliminary round at the 2017 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship. On Tuesday in Vigo, the same Slovenia squad took revenge with a commanding victory over the African side, claiming the first two points available in Group A.

 

GROUP A
Slovenia vs Tunisia 32:25 (17:14)

 

Slovenia came out of the gate fast and strong, clearly determined to open their campaign with a victory. Compared with the Youth World Championship in Georgia two years ago, where they ranked 13th, Slovenia had undergone an obvious change in gears – they were ruthless on counter attacks, solid in defence and able to rely on a strong bench that meant coach Sasa Prapotnik could rotate his line-up extensively.

 

Last summer, this same squad clinched their country’s first ever U20 European title – that experience and confidence surely contributed to Slovenia’s performance versus Tunisia. At the EURO on home ground in 2018, Gregor Ocvirk was the top scorer, and he also led his side in this ranking in the round one clash at Spain 2019, with seven goals.

 

Slovenia had four attempts on goal before Tunisia even managed a shot, creating an early lead at 4:0 that prompted the African side’s first time-out in the seventh minute. Slovenia pummelled Tunisia’s goal with counter attacks, and stayed steady in front at 9:5 when Mark Ferjan made a great save off a clear chance as the first quarter came to a close.

 

After a fairly one-side opening, Tunisia found their way into the game and slowly closed the gap. With five minutes left in the first half, the distance stood at five goals, 15:10. The African team narrowed the gap further before the end of the opening 30 minutes, leaving themselves with a chance for a comeback.

 

However, as soon as the match resumed, Slovenia reopened the distance. From that point, they did not allow their opponents closer than four goals. By the 48th minute, with a 27:20 advantage, it was clear Slovenia were on the way to earning their first set of two points.

 

Player of the match: Gregor Ocvirk, Slovenia