For this 10th day of the Ligue Butagaz Energie, OGC Nice handball faced the Neptunes de Nantes. A match not easy to negotiate on paper between the eighth (Nice) and the third (Nantes) in the championship.
At home, the Aiglonnes were eager to perform well after the defeat against Brest at the beginning of the week. Once again without their captain and top scorer, Ehsan Abdelmalek, coach Clément Alcacer could count on the presence of Dienaba Sy. The 27-year-old winger, who was recently voted Aiglonne of the month, took on the captain’s role.
Early in the match, the Niçoises took the lead in the first half. Without extending the gap, the Aiglonnes seemed to control the start of the match. Gordana Mitrovic stood out by responding to Emilie Bellec’s hat-trick in the first ten minutes. Then it was the former Nantes player Raïssa Dapina‘s turn to shine. The 28-year-old Franco-Senegalese winger scored four goals in the first half, allowing her teammates to stay ahead at halftime (16-15).
The Aiglonnes eventually crack
Returning from the locker rooms, Nice did better than just resist. Clément Alcacer’s players held the score for the first five minutes. However, the superiority of the Nantes team became apparent. The Aiglonnes conceded two hat-tricks in less than ten minutes, completely reigniting the game. Nice lost contact with the score despite a very good second half by the young back Tena Petika (23 years old). The Croatian international, who arrived on the Côte d’Azur during the offseason from Zagreb, was very successful this afternoon. She even finished as the top scorer of the match with eight goals, including five in the second half.
The 20 saves by Marija Colic unfortunately were not enough for the red and blacks to win. Final score (25-29) in favor of the Neptunes de Nantes, who left the Halle des Sports Charles Ehrmann with the three points of victory. In the standings, this second defeat of the week has no consequences for the Niçoises, who remain eighth.
The next match for OGCN handball is in 10 days, on Wednesday, November 15, on the court of Chambray Touraine.
