Republic of Korea recovered from their loss to Germany and added their second victory when Round 3 of the 23rd IHF Women’s World Championship began in Leipzig on Tuesday. The win against People’s Republic of China moved Korea up to four points on the Group D table, where they were later joined by The Netherlands, who defeated Cameroon in the second match of the day in Arena Leipzig. 

Serbia became the first side to claim a point against the hosts when the final buzzer sounded in the last game of the round for Group D, as they secured a draw with a last-second goal that ended Germany’s winning run.

Tuesday’s results put Germany and Serbia equal at the top of the group on five points, while The Netherlands and Korea are on four, and PR of China and Cameroon stay on zero. 

 

GROUP D

Republic of Korea vs People’s Republic of China 31:19 (18:10)

 

In the opening match on Tuesday, the Asian champions left no doubt of their dominance within their region, which has earned them a total of 13 continental titles since the first bi-annual competition was held in 1987. After a level opening that saw the teams equal at 3:3 in the seventh minute, Korea began to pull away to lead 8:4 midway through the half. By half-time, Korea held an eight-goal advantage that meant China’s opportunity for a comeback was slim.

 

“This was better than the last matches and this game proved that we can do better,” said China’s Yu Yuanyuan. Her team’s performance certainly improved in comparison with their earlier Germany 2017 matches, and the Asian Championship bronze medallists matched Korea’s pace through to the end of the first half when they began to tire and make more errors. At that point, Korea goalkeeper Saeyoung Park recorded a 44% save rate that highlighted a clear problem area for China. Korea’s game was not at its best as they also missed easy chances for goals and made uncharacteristic mistakes in attack, but they were still the clearly stronger team as they had little trouble finishing the match with a 12-goal score line.

“We had a lot of young players who had to replace our injured players. They did very well and so it was a smart move to not let the injured players play,” said Korea coach Jae Won Kang. “China played very well, but they slower. We were very unlucky in our match against Germany. The match against Serbia will be the most important one for us.”

 

Player of the Match presented by adidas: Migyeong SONG (KOR)

 

The Netherlands vs Cameroon 29:22 (14:8)

 

Netherlands coach Helle Thomsen said before her team faced the African side, that “Cameroon are not an easy team, but they are a team you must beat.” That was exactly how the squad approached the match — pushing through the physical 60 minutes, staying strong in one-on-one situations to gain penalties against the tough defence they faced, and running fast breaks that allowed them to score easy goals. At the final whistle, the 2015 silver medallists celebrated their second set of two points, which drew them level with Korea on the Group D table. 

 

"This was a very difficult game. However, we did better than in the matches before,” said Cameroon coach Jean-Marie Zambo. 

After the score of 6:4 after 10 minutes, The Netherlands pulled ahead to a six-goal advantage at the end of the first quarter, and that same difference stuck through to half-time. The main difference between the teams was the speed of The Netherlands’ counter attacks and inconsistency from Cameroon, which saw them endure periods of no goals as well as moments where they threatened to close the score line. Cameroon briefly decreased the deficit early in the second period, but as the last 10 minutes began and Laura van der Heijden took her team to a 26:18 lead off a counter-attack goal, it was clear the outcome was decided. 

"It was a very tough match and I'm happy we won. Tomorrow will be a very important match for us against Serbia,” said Netherlands wing Debbie Bont. 

Player of the Match presented by adidas: Debbie BONT (NED)

 

Germany vs Serbia 22:22 (9:11)

 

A thrilling match between Germany and Serbia ended in a draw courtesy of a goal from line player Dragana Cvijic with seconds left on the clock. Germany were more focused than their opponents to begin the match, taking an early lead before Serbia coach Ljubomir Obradovic called the first time-out as the opening 10 minutes came to a close and his team were not settling. After the pause, Serbia’s attack fell into place and it took them nine minutes to level at 7:7. 

The 2013 World Championship runners-up controlled the second quarter of the game, allowing Germany only two goals in 15 minutes — but the hosts returned stronger in the second period and equalised (11:11) after five minutes of play. As the clock ticked toward the final buzzer neither team could create the deciding difference, and it remained a one-for-one game right to the final whistle when the teams split the two points.

 

“We were looking forward to tonight’s match. We had the chance to win. Our rivals also had the chance to win. In the end, this was the most realistic final score,” said Obradovic, while Germany goalkeeper Katja Kramarczyk was not so pleased to have lost the victory in the last seconds:

“We wanted the victory but got one point. I heard we qualified for the eighth-final. That is the best thing about today.”

Player of the Match presented by adidas: Svenja HUBER (GER)