Struggling since the start of the championship (1 win, 3 losses), the women of OGC Nice Handball face, this Tuesday evening, the Metz Handball, the reigning French champions. The task appears to be daunting, but Cléopatre Darleux’s teammates have resources, as they demonstrated against Fleury-les-Aubrais (31-32 loss).
As soon as the schedule was released, the women from Nice anticipated a challenging start to the championship. Indeed, in the first five matchdays, the top 3 from the 2013-2014 season awaited OGC Nice Handball. In order, Fleury-les-Aubrais, Issy Paris, and Metz, nothing less. The result, at a quarter of the championship, is thus disappointing but logical with 1 win for 3 losses and a 7th place in the standings, with three teams still having not experienced victory.
This Tuesday at 8:30 PM, at the Charles-Ehrmann hall, the women from Nice take on the best on the territory, the Metz Handball team, titled last June for the 18th time in their history. The Dragonnes, nickname of the Metz team, are in 3rd place in the standings with three wins in four matches. The only hiccup was the loss at Nimes, but since then, the French champions have resumed their cruising speed (+18 at Mios, +6 against Toulon). Before starting the Champions League next week, they will be keen to deliver a strong performance and prove that they are ready for the European challenges.
The women from Nice, on their side, are doubtful. The one-goal loss against Fleury-les-Aubrais (on September 19, 31-32) dealt a blow to morale despite a good performance against a team aiming for the semi-finals again. Sébastien Gardillou’s players will also want to erase last week’s underperformance at Issy Paris Handball (31-24 loss) and prove that their top-tier recruitment can lead them to the top five places in the ranking. For this, the women from Nice can count on the French international, Alexandra Lacrabère, who scored 7 goals last week, and the Icelandic, Karen Knutsdottir, who scored four times.
Photo credit and more information at www.ogcnicehandball.com
