News
Magical semi-finals set to entertain in Herning
14 Dec. 2023
Two mouth-watering clashes are set to deliver drama and excitement as the final weekend of the 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship is upon us.Â
A packed Jyske Bank Boxen in Herning will see Denmark and Norway clash for a place in the final at 17:30 CET, while the second semi-final will pit together two defensive powerhouses, France and Sweden.
SEMI-FINALS
17:30 CET Denmark vs Norway
One co-host at Denmark/Norway/Sweden 2023 will surely be in the final of the competition, after Denmark and Norway will face off in a crunch clash, the first semi-final of the 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship.
It is the mother of all derbies, a heavyweight clash, between two Scandinavian rivals, as the two teams have won 17 medals between them and five of the 25 titles in the history of the IHF Women’s World Championship, all in the past 13 editions of the competition.
This was also the final of the EHF EURO 2022, when Norway took the continental title with a 27:25 win last year in Ljubljana, riding a strong comeback to add another medal to their impressive tally. Moreover, Norway are in their 11th semi-final at the world handball flagship competition, having won eight of them, while losing only three.
Their streak of top-10 finishes is nothing but impressive – as they have never finished lower than the ninth place in 22 appearances in the competition - and their 30:23 win in the quarter-finals against the Netherlands sealed their fifth semi-finals berth in a row.Â
Moreover, Norway also hold the head-to-head record against Denmark in the past 11 meetings, winning eight, as opposed to Denmark’s three, including three of the last four matches.
“They are a really good team and at home in the (Jyske Bank) Boxen they will have so much support behind them. It will be a tough game for sure. We have struggled the last years when we played against them they are really tough in defence, so it will be a good game and we will give everything to get this one as well,” says Silje Solberg, Norway’s goalkeeper, who was the hummel Player of the Match in the quarter-finals win against the Netherlands.
Three years ago, the two sides also met in the EHF EURO 2020 semi-final, in a deserted Jyske Bank Boxen, due to COVID-19 regulations, and Norway also won, 27:24. It was a match which Denmark are trying to forget and now they will be aiming to excite their own fans, which are due to pack the arena in Herning for the big clash.
So far, Norway have the best attack (35 goals per match), as opposed to Denmark’s 32-goal per match average, as well as the best saving percentage for the goalkeepers in the competition, 41.3%, while also conceding a lower number of goals – 20.8 per match – as opposed to Denmark’s 22.
On paper, it looks like Norway are slight favourites, but with all the support behind them, Denmark will surely be looking to balance the scales and to produce a good performance, with roller-coaster rides against Serbia (25:21), Japan (25:26) and even Montenegro in the quarter-finals, as the 26:24 win saw Denmark led by seven goals before Montenegro cut the gap in the end.
“This will be magical, to play against Norway, in the World Championship semi-final,” said Denmark’s goalkeeper, Sandra Toft, who is still on the hunt for her maiden international title with the national team.
So far, Toft has been part of the squads which finished fourth at the EHF EURO 2020, won the bronze medal at the 2021 IHF Women’s World Championship and the silver at the EHF EURO 2022, a huge progression for Denmark over the last years, which they will aim to finish with a title at Denmark/Norway/Sweden 2023 in Herning.
21:00 CET Sweden vs France
Six years ago, at the 2017 IHF Women’s World Championship, Sweden were writing history, sealing their maiden semi-finals berth, with a 26:23 win against Denmark. They finished on the fourth place in that competition, after conceding a 23:25 loss in the semi-final against France.
History will repeat itself on Friday in the Jyske Bank Boxen in Herning, when France and Sweden lock horns once again, as the two sides will fight once again for a place in the final of the IHF Women’s World Championship.
While Sweden have never reached the final act, losing that only semi-final at Germany 2017, France have won all the six semi-finals they played, progressing to the last act of the world handball flagship competition every time. Olivier Krumbholz’s side has also reached the final in two of the last three editions, aiming to ensure another medal here.
The two sides are the only teams riding a seven-game winning streak at the 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship, but something has got to give in what will be Olivier Krumbholz’s penultimate match in the world handball flagship competition, as France’s coach announced his retirement after the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
“Since I came back, we have only missed one semi-final in ten major international competitions, it's something that makes us very proud but which is also very important because this time showcases French handball. But you have to keep in mind that it is hard, very hard. Now I'm going to motivate the players a little so that we can go a little further,” said Krumbholz.
Surprinsingly enough, France have the better attack between the two sides - 222 goals scored to Sweden’s 206 – but the Scandinavian side has shipped the lowest number of goals so far – 19.57 per game – exactly four less than France’s 24.57, but Krumbholz’s side has really shined when it mattered, conceding 23 goals in the win against Norway and 22 goals in the quarter-finals win against Czechia.
While for Sweden this is the first-ever seven-game winning streak at the IHF Women’s World Championship, France have started the competition with seven wins in a row for the second time in a row, after Spain 2021, when their only loss came against Norway, in the final, after a superb comeback by the Scandinavian side.
“We had a great competition so far, of course, we played at home for the first time in Sweden, but right now we are here, in Herning, and we want to deliver the best possible performances to win a medal,” says Nathalie Hagman, Sweden’s top scorer so far in the competition, with 38 goals.
PLACEMENT MATCHES 5–8
11:30 CET Germany vs Czechia
Having already sealed their Olympic Qualification Tournament berths, Germany and Czechia will fight for a better place at the end of the 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship.Â
For Germany, the chance to finish fifth or six, by winning this match, would bring the best result since their bronze medal at France 2007, while Czechia have ensured that they will at least tie their top performance, the eighth place at Germany 2017.
However, for coach Markus Gaugisch, it will be imperative to lift his players after the painful 20:27 loss in the quarter-finals against Sweden, where they failed to score for the first 14 minutes and were down 16:6 at the break, scoring the second lowest number of goals in history in the first half of a quarter-final at the world handball flagship competition.
On the other hand, Czechia will have the unique chance to send three players between the top 10 scorers in an edition of the IHF Women’s World Championship. Left back Marketa Jerabkova is leading the standings with 51 goals and is all but assured the title of the top goal scorer, while left back Veronika Mala (39 goals) and  Charlotte Cholevova (38 goals) are likely to leapfrog the second-placed Eliza Buceschi (47 goals) with two games in hand, placing sixth and seventh currently.
14:00 CET Montenegro vs Netherlands
It will definitely be a special match for Netherlands’ coach, Per Johansson, who has coached Montenegro between 2017 and 2020, when he was replaced by current coach, Bojana Popovic.
However, Johansson will definitely leave his feelings aside when his current side takes on Montenegro, as the Dutch team will aim to end the 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship on a high, after they ended up on the ninth place two years ago at Spain 2021.
Previously undefeated before the quarter-final against Norway, the Netherlands had no gas in the tank in the second half and conceded a 23:30 loss, but now will try to end on the fifth place, which would be the fourth top-5 placement in the last five editions of the competition.
On the other hand, Montenegro have already conceded three losses, but left everything on the court against Denmark in the 24:26 loss, proving a worthy opponent, fighting until the last drop of energy. As both teams have conceded less than 23 goals so far per match in the competition, it will likely be a question about who has the best efficiency in attack to qualify for the Placement Match 5/6 on Sunday.