After a three-week break, the Cavigal handball players were back on the court. Facing the Aix-en-Provence reserve team, the Nice players glimpsed victory.
The 8th day of the National 1 handball championship ended this Saturday. For their return to competition, the Nice players went up against the Aix-en-Provence team, with the firm intention of ending the series of three consecutive defeats they suffered last month.
However, the start of the match was somewhat sluggish. The Aix captain Lucas Berchoux was unstoppable and quickly gave his team a three-goal lead. A captain’s duel emerged with a response from Alexis Bon (6 goals). The Nice player returning to competition brought his team level. Then the key players from the start of the season took turns shining. Florian Graglia and Kristian Vassilev (7 goals) allowed Nice to take the lead. Things seemed to be going well as the referee even excluded Lucas Berchoux (4 goals) after 11 minutes of play. The Cavigal players managed their lead with great accuracy in front of the goal. At halftime, Cyril Parmentelot’s men were leading (17-19).
Returning from the break, the red and black team experienced a difficult moment in shooting. With four missed shots in five minutes, the Azuréens gave the locals an opportunity to get back into the game. That’s when Romain Boveron set things straight. Maxime Aicardi, treated for a concussion protocol just before the break, regained his composure and made crucial saves at this point in the match. The Maralpins even extended their lead up to four points. But Aix-en-Provence chipped away at their deficit until they leveled the score in the final minute. A save by Simon Forets and a final goal by Samuel Barennes Berkani denied Cavigal the victory.
The Nice players left with a draw (34-34) from Provence. In the standings, Cavigal finds itself in 7th place but only three points behind the leaders Grenoble and Aix. So nothing alarming, but they will need to find their way back to victory next week at home against Billère Pau, currently 3rd in the championship. See you at 8:30 p.m. at the Pasteur hall for the kickoff of this match.
