Tunisia clinch African derby, as Egypt, Poland and Hungary start with clear wins

A hard-fought game saw Tunisia make a strong comeback in the second half in the African derby against Algeria to take a 27:22 win and improve their chances for progression to the main round at the 24th IHF Men's Junior World Championship.

In the other matches, Poland returned with a bang to the competition, a clear 47:22 win over the United States of America; Egypt also rode a flawless second half against Cuba to take a 45:28 win, while Hungary wrote off a mediocre first half to clinch a 30:22 win over Argentina. 

• Group A

Poland vs United States of America 47:22 (25:11)

Poland pulled no punches in their return to the IHF Men's Junior World Championship for the first time since 2003. The European side provided a complete game on both sides of the ball against the United States of America, dominating especially in the attack, where they provided their best-ever outing in the history of the competition.

Szymon Wiaderny, Barlinek Industria Kielce's rising star, led the charge with five goals in the first half when Poland missed only four of their 29 shots to take a commanding 25:11 lead.

In fact, only two of Poland's outfield players failed to score a goal in the first half, as coach Zugmunt Kamys constantly rotated his squad, handing good amounts of rest to all of his players while trying to maintain the needed chemistry to perform in their debut at Germany/Greece 2023.

On the other side, Danilo Rojevic's side could not contain Poland's fast breaks while also making 13 turnovers during the first half, as the European side constantly took advantage of their chances.

It went from bad to worse for the American side, with Poland boosting their lead, as all their outfield players scored at least one goal, and Wiaderny entered the conversation about the top goal scorer title at Germany/Greece 2023 with an eight-goal outing.

Eventually, Poland sealed a clear 47:22 win, a good warmup match before they face Croatia and France, in do-or-die clashes for a place in the main round, which is the European side's objective, despite a 20-year wait for a place at the IHF Men's Junior World Championship.

hummel Player of the Match: Szymon Wiaderny (Poland)

• Group B

Algeria vs Tunisia 22:27 (11:10)

This might have very well been the decider for the second place in the main round from Group B, with co-hosts Germany being the big favourites to secure the first place while Libya being the big underdogs.

Therefore, it was no surprise that this might have just well been one of the most balanced games in the preliminary round, with Algeria and Tunisia, two teams which knew each other well, trading punches for 60 minutes.

Last summer, Algeria beat Tunisia in the semi-finals of the 2022 CAHB African Men's Junior Handball Championship, 29:25. Therefore, it was clear that the game was going to be very well-balanced, and after 30 minutes, Algeria were in front (11:10).

There were five lead changes throughout the game, but Tunisia managed the storm well, with Amine Ben Salem and Yassine Ben Salem shining, with 14 goals between them, as Algeria found no way to weather the storm.

While centre back Meddahi Rabah Racim continued to deliver for Algeria, finishing the game with seven goals, his side could simply not perform better, as the game ended in disappointment for the runners-up of the 2022 CAHB African Men's Junior Handball Championship.

A 3:0 run for Tunisia, which prevented Algeria from scoring for four minutes and 28 seconds, was the pivotal moment of the game, as they created a four-goal gap, which proved to be unassailable, bringing Tunisia a step closer to their objective, sealing a main round berth at Germany/Greece 2023.

hummel Player of the Match: Yassine Ben Salem (Tunisia)

• Group E

Hungary vs Argentina 30:22 (13:12)

An 11:3 start of the second half was enough to propel Hungary to their first win at the 2023 IHF Men's Junior World Championship, after a disappointing first half saw Argentina stay close to the European powerhouse, which is clearly aiming for a medal at Germany/Greece 2023.

Yet a plethora of turnovers – eight only in the first 30 minutes – hampered Hungary's confidence in front of goal, despite plenty of players being rotated in the game without any meaningful contributions to the outcome.

Martin Nicolas Jung and Santiago Barcelo Garcia were Argentina's top scorers in the first half, with three goals each, but the main issue for the South American side was the goalkeeping part, as their two goalkeepers only combined for three saves until the 45th minute.

Therefore, when Hungary finally got a better grip on the game, it was clear which was the top team in the game, with left wing Bence Krakovszki, who had already made his debut for Hungary's senior national team, dominating his opponents.

While Krakovszki only scored five goals, those came in that 11:3 pivotal run, which left Argentina reeling and without any real possibility for a comeback, especially as Hungary's goalkeeper, Kristóf Palasics, started saving more and more shots, including some key one-on-one saves on fast breaks and from the wings.

With Palasics, the hummel Player of the Match, finishing the match with nine saves for a 37.5% saving efficiency, Hungary eventually sealed a 30:22 win, albeit with the caveat of needing to boast more consistency throughout the tournament were they to fulfil their objective.

hummel Player of the Match: Kristóf Palasics (Hungary)

 

 

 

• Group H 

Egypt vs Cuba 45:28 (20:14)

While Egypt are playing at their 19th IHF Men's Junior World Championship, Cuba are debutants at this level. And the African champions proved too strong for their Caribbean rivals, winning by 17 goals. 

The young 'Pharaohs' took early control of the game, as goals by Rady Ahmed and Omar Mohamed propelled them to a 5:3 lead. However, the Cubans hit back soon, drawing level at 7:7.

Yet the Egyptians started to dominate again. Cuba's goalkeeping improved after Dairon Giron was replaced by Esniel Negret, but even that could not stop the Africans from steadily increasing their advantage.

Egypt played well in defence, often scoring from fast breaks, and their left wing Rady Ahmed netted both from open play and 7m shots, so the African team's lead reached six goals at half-time (20:14). 

After the restart, the 'Pharaohs' continued to push forward, and their lead reached double digits, 27:17. The Egyptian coach heavily rotated his squad, and in the end, all their 14 court players scored at least once, as the Africans cruised to a commanding victory. 

In Cuba's first-ever match at this level, some of their players did a good job, as goalkeeper Negret recorded 12 saves, and Maiko Vazques became the top scorer of the game with 11 goals. Still, Egypt were better as a team – and they won deservedly. 

hummel Player of the Match: Rady Ahmed (Egypt)