OGC Nice Handball traveled to Brest this Wednesday evening for the 5th matchday of the Ligue Butagaz Énergie. A one-sided match.
Here it is, the first real major test for Sébastien Mizoule’s players. In Brest, the Niçoises arrived with a perfect record of six wins in as many matches. The same was true for the Brestoises, title contenders, who had not lost since May 11 in the championship (against Metz). Thus, this match was expected to be difficult for the Maralpines, facing the many internationals present on the court.
And the start of the match proved it. Things moved quickly, the Brest defense, very solid, undermined the offensives of Marie-Hélène Sajka and Hanna Ahlèn. Moreover, Brest played fast attacks, leaving no chance for Cécilia Errin. But the Nice goalkeeper, recently voted best goalkeeper of September in Ligue Butagaz Énergie, managed to limit the damage twice. Nevertheless, the Niçoises were quickly down (6-1) after five minutes of play.
Very displeased with the level of play his team was displaying, Sébastien Mizoule tried to remotivate his players early in the game, but it wasn’t enough. When Marie-Hélène Sajka managed to find the flaw with a long-range shot, Brest’s speed hurt the defense, which struggled to reposition itself. OGC Nice Handball still took advantage of a slight drop in pace from the Bretonnes to come back to within 3, thanks to several inspirations from Marie-Hélène Sajka. The right back performed miracles with her left arm to try to keep Nice in the game. However, it wasn’t sufficient as by the 20th minute, Brest was comfortably leading (16-8). Only Cécilia Errin also managed to stand out with six saves, the same number as her French international counterpart Camille Depuiset.
While Marine Dupuis managed to make her presence known on several counterattacks, the Azuréennes fell short to compete in this first half (18-13).
Brest strolls
Without solutions, OGC Nice Handball relied on its top scorer, but quickly found itself ten points behind Brest. Coach Sébastien Mizoule called a quick new timeout to try to spur his players, without real conviction… The die was already cast! Brest continued to pull away, crucifying Maria Colic, who replaced Cécilia Errin in the first quarter-hour of the second half. The gap kept widening, due to a weak defense and an attack perfectly mastered by the opponent.
The goals kept coming for Brest, but the goal was elsewhere: to avoid falling apart and to prepare as best as possible for Saturday’s match against the other giant of the championship, Metz, before the international break.
Final score: (39-23). Despite this heavy defeat, OGC Nice Handball remains in the top 5 before hosting the championship leaders at 8 PM, this Saturday, at the Charles-Ehrmann sports hall.
