European League (H): Montpellier gets closer to the quarterfinals

Montpellier won 36-24 against Elverum in the first leg of the European League playoffs, giving them a good chance to compete in the quarterfinals against Porto.

Third in their group during the second phase of the European League, Montpellier had to play a playoff against Elverum, who finished second in their group. The first leg match at home went well for MHB. The Hérault team indeed won 36-24 against the Norwegians, in a one-sided match. Montpellier had a near-perfect start to the game, leading 12-2 after 18 minutes, thanks in particular to Arthur Lenne and Diego Simonet. Elverum made a slight comeback, closing the gap to 13-6. However, Montpellier pushed on towards the end of the first half to go into halftime leading 17-9.

Thurin and Bolzinger shine In the second half, the Norwegians came back to -7 (19-12; 24-17) but never managed to go below that mark. On the contrary, MHB regained momentum and once again increased the lead to over ten goals, even up to +13. In the end, Montpellier won by twelve goals, especially thanks to an excellent performance by Jack Thurin, who scored eight goals. In goal, Charles Bolzinger also delivered a top-notch performance, with 16 saves out of 36 shots. The Hérault team will therefore travel to Norway next Tuesday with a comfortable lead. The winner of this playoff will face Porto in the quarterfinals.

Mathé: “A benchmark match” “It was important to widen the gap in the first leg with an eye on the return match. It’s satisfying when the plan unfolds as we had envisioned. We had been criticized for conceding too many goals recently. We responded well defensively. If we had to highlight a benchmark match in this area, it would be this one. Our offensive work continues in the same vein. We really showed a lot of energy from the start of the match. Our good start left them a little knocked out. Charles (Bolzinger) represents the team, he set the tone. He managed to maintain the course in the second half, like the team,” rejoiced coach Erick Mathé.

Top scorers for Montpellier: Thurin (8), Lenne (4), Monte Dos Santos (4), Balaguer Romeu (4), Plantin (4), Simonet (3), Moraes Ferreira (3), Porte (3), Casado (2), Villeminot (1)