Branik Maribor Remains on Top After Home Tournament
The second day of the tournament in Maribor delivered several exciting and closely contested matches — as well as one game that produced a remarkable total of 45 goals. The highlight of the day was the Slovenian derby between hosts Branik and Koper-Hanna, which ended in a victory for the Maribor side. The tightest clash came in the duel between Mladost and Vienna’s Ströck, while Ljubljana Slovan also had to work hard to overcome Kostrena.
The opening match of Sunday saw the Adriatic derby go to Opatija, who secured a decisive lead against Rovinj’s Delfin by halftime.
Opatija – Delfin 17:9 (3:2, 5:1, 3:3, 6:3)
Referees: Kiss, Cretoiu
Opatija: Dipić, Kolanović; B. Smokvina 2, Tomić, Turk 1, Peroš 5, Blažič 1, Kaluđerović, Doknić 1, Dujmić 3, Petrić 2, Vlah 2, Sklepić, T. Smokvina. Coach: Marcel Latin.
Delfin: Ljubenko; Baričević 1, Radetić, Krevatin, Kusanović 1, Radić, Grilec 1, Škegro, Supić 2, Gavrilović 1, Poropat 1, Bonassin 1, Gržinić 1. Coach: Goran Volarević.
After an even first quarter, Opatija pulled away in the second. Supić equalized at 3:3, but Marcel Latin’s team then scored five consecutive goals, and at the start of the third quarter Frane Vlah extended the lead to 10:3. From that point on, the match was decided. Duje Peroš led the way with five goals, while Lucijan Dujmić added three. Former Slovenian international Marko Blažić scored once. Patrick Supić netted twice for Delfin.
Mladost – Ströck Wien 9:7 (3:0, 1:2, 2:3, 3:2)
Referees: Homovec, Radonjić.
Mladost: Batoš, Radman; Lokas, Kumrić, Čolović 1, Erenda 2, Rogić, Bolanca, Šorić 1, Dobrić 5, Maglica, Brčić, Antunović, Šindler 4. Coach: Damir Vincek.
Ströck Wien: Hoferica, Abdulgiriev; Bekesi 1, Dano 2, Stefanović, Mitruk 2, Sarandi 1, Milošević, Ribić, Ibrišimović 1, Dukić, Šečerović, Jovandić 1, Sarandi. Coach: Mike Fasching.
After two wins on Saturday, Vienna announced their ambitions to reach the final tournament, which will include the top six teams. Mladost, meanwhile, are already nearly safe and handled Koper with ease the previous day. But they faced much more resistance from Ströck, despite racing to a 3:0 first-quarter lead.
In the second and especially in the third quarter, the Austrians came alive. At the start of the third, Adam Mitruk cut the deficit to just one goal (3:4), and the gap remained the same going into the final period. Thanks to a solid defense, Mladost held on, and when Andrija Čolović scored with an extra man for a 9:6 lead, Zagreb finally breathed easier. Fran Dobrić finished with five goals, while Mitruk netted twice for Vienna.
Medveščak – Torpedo 34:11 (11:5, 5:2, 10:2, 8:2)
Referees: Kiss, Radonjić.
Medveščak: Subota, Šimatović; Čiga-Šterle 2, Džalto 1, Matić 1, Marković 4, Teskera 1, Dojčinović-Ermakora 3, Sule 4, Beljan 5, Ražov 4, Varga 3, Orlovac-Marić 2, Babić 4. Coach: Ivan Rukavina.
Torpedo: Beglerović, Serdarević; Čajić, Parača, Redžepagić 6, Danis Bašić, Ajanović 2, Danin Bašić 3, Piknjač, Rozajac, Zubčević, Kedić. Coach: Dino Džehović.
In a clash between two winless teams from the first three tournaments, Medveščak completely overpowered the Sarajevo side, scoring 34 goals. All Medveščak field players found the net. Dominik Beljan led the team with five goals, while Redžepagić scored six for Torpedo — the most by any player in the match.
Branik Maribor – Koper-Hanna 19:13 (6:1, 5:5, 4:4, 4:3)
Referees: Cretoiu, Homovec.
Branik Maribor: Zaninović, Kulenović; Šantak, Pajnik, Seljak 3, Miletić 2, Kačič, Pevec 6, Hadžić 1, Bašić, Kazagić 2, Rajšp 2, Brčić 2, Bucalo 1. Coach: Tin Kulenović.
Koper-Hanna: Bressan, Lončarević; Janošević, Krivičić 2, Pencelj, Nastran 1, Fabič 1, Sulić, Fičur 2, Treu 1, Lazić 3, Bulatović 2, Jačimović, Koprivica 1. Coach: Blaž Čeklić.
The only all-Slovenian matchup of the day went to the reigning national champions. Branik Maribor built a large early lead that allowed them to control the remainder of the match. Midway through the third quarter, Jurij Seljak made it 14:7, but Koper briefly revived their hopes after Danilo Bulatović scored with 16 seconds left in the third (14:10).
However, just 13 seconds later Aljaž Pevec struck again, and Seljak added another early in the final quarter to put the game out of reach. Pevec led Branik with six goals; Seljak scored three. Lazić had three for Koper, while Fičur, Krivičić, and Bulatović each added two.
Kostrena – Ljubljana Slovan 14:17 (3:6, 4:4, 5:5, 2:2)
Referees: Radonjić, Homovec.
Kostrena: Seveljević; Radić, B. Galić, Sotošek 3, Tiškivski, I. Galić, Abramović 3, Jurić 2, Babić 1, Vuković 3, Šunjić 2, Nemet. Coach: Kristijan Šunjić.
Ljubljana Slovan: Beton, Karničar; Petrović, Čanč 2, Potočnik 4, Klobučar 2, Lipnik 5, Povhe 2, Kirasič, Čarni, Četković 2, Petković, Pollak, Rašljić. Coach: Jure Škof.
Ljubljana had Saturday off, while Kostrena cruised past Kamnik. Their strong form was evident again, forcing Slovan — the only undefeated team alongside Branik — to work hard for the win.
Former Slovan player Rok Vuković opened the scoring for Kostrena, but goals from Klobučar and two from Enej Potočnik turned the match around. Slovan never relinquished the lead again. Their biggest advantage came after Marcel Lipnik made it 13:8. Early in the final quarter, Povhe stretched the margin to 17:12, and Kostrena only managed to soften the defeat.
Lipnik (5 goals) and Potočnik (4) led Slovan, while Vuković, Sotošek, and Abramović each scored three for Kostrena.
Author Miha Štamcar
Photo Aleksander Sokler
