This Friday, September 12, OGC Nice Handball hosted Plan-de-Cuques at the Charles-Ehrmann Sports Hall. In front of their home crowd, the women from Nice had a scare.
Third time’s a charm. After a perfect start to the season with two victories in as many matches, the azure players aimed for three in a row at home. Against Plan-de-Cuques, who posed challenges to the Niçoises last season, the match started well. Marie-Hélène Sajka perfectly set the tone for her teammates. Defense took precedence over offense, and the goalkeepers let nothing through, as exemplified by Cécilia Errin, newly arrived during the off-season on the Côte d’Azur. The Guadeloupean delivered a stellar performance with 15 saves.
Despite this, Plan-de-Cuques managed to pull slightly ahead. Marie-Hélène Sajka and Margot Le Blevec tried to narrow the gap, but Plan-de-Cuques held their ground and maintained a +2 advantage (7-10 at the 13th minute).
The defense from the women of Plan-de-Cuques is tough and answers the offensives from the Red and Black. Sébastien Mizoule decided to call his first timeout of the match in front of a frenzied Nice crowd. Inspired by the atmosphere, Rose Hertoghe scored twice, allowing her teammates to close in on the scoreboard (9-11). The Aiglonnes’ goalkeeper let nothing pass from the multiple opposing attempts.
Marie-Hélène Sajka returned to the field to contribute to the effort. OGC Nice Handball came back to (11-12) before the visiting team called their second timeout. This wasn’t enough to stop the comeback by the Aiglonnes, who took the lead two minutes before halftime. Whitney Semedo Monteiro and Cécilia Errin allowed Nice to edge ahead at the break (15-14).
A suspenseful end to the match
Returning from the locker room, Plan-de-Cuques reignited the hostilities. Léa Naomi Schupach, the Provençal goalkeeper, made three consecutive saves to regain the advantage for her team. The Aiglonnes tried to catch up with the gap created by the opposing team. Once again, a single point separated the two teams—a gap that remained largely unchanged for the rest of the match. Nice’s supporters chanted to encourage their players, who tried their best to make up the deficit. Their efforts paid off as the Aiglonnes equalized at the 43rd minute thanks to the unstoppable Ehsan Abdelmalek, who scored six goals that night.
The Aiglonnes gave it their all to maintain this slight advantage. As in the first half, Cécilia Errin stopped every ball. Although not particularly successful that night, the Aiglonnes’ captain, Marine Dupuis, stepped up at a crucial moment with a 7-meter throw. In the final minutes, the players from Nice relied on their goalkeeper’s quick reactions and capitalized to score and gain a substantial advantage, once again thanks to Marie-Hélène Sajka (10 goals). Trailing by +3 with three minutes remaining, Plan-de-Cuques tried to make a comeback but in vain. OGC Nice Handball won the match (26-25).
The Aiglonnes fought relentlessly throughout the match. Their efforts paid off, granting them victory in the final minutes. Marie-Hélène Sajka was rightfully named the player of the match. With this new victory, the Niçoises climbed onto the podium with six points, just behind the two powerhouses of the championship, Metz and Brest.
OGC Nice now has a meeting on Wednesday, September 24, on Chambray’s field before hosting Dijon on Sunday, September 28.
