OGC Nice Handball falls 26-23 against Nîmes in the first leg of the Coupe de la Ligue round of 16. Nonexistent in the first half, the Niçoises lifted their heads after the break, but the damage was already done. They will need to win by four goals in the Gard to continue the journey.
With the impressive away victory, it was thought that the Niçoises had finally launched into this season, but the reception of Nîmes in the Coupe de la Ligue dashed hopes seen last week. All too often this season, Nice has shown two faces: a transparent first half and a quality second half with a fighting spirit. On the other side, Nîmes arrived with six injured players, seemingly the right time to achieve a result, on paper.
A totally failed start to the match for the Niçoises, notably Alexandra Lacrabère who missed two shots and a penalty, a sign of a complicated evening. We had to wait until the 4th minute to see a goal from the captain, the first for the Niçoises. In goal, Manon Sol, the fourth goalkeeper, stringing together saves, but the attacks from Nîmes hit the target (1-3, 4th). Jericek and Chebbah had fun and created a small lead for HBCN (2-5, 9th). The Niçoises reacted through Biljana Bandelier, who scored three goals in a row (4-6, 11th). The OGC Nice goalkeeper continued her good spell with her third and fourth saves, but as the quarter-hour passed, Nice faltered, and Nîmes pulled away (5-11, 19th). Lacrabère and then Escribano missed their penalties, 0/3 at halftime. The Niçoises went into the dressing room with a not insurmountable gap, 10-14.
“We didn’t show up in the first half. We missed too many shots, we weren’t up to the occasion. Our start to the match was too complicated again, we need to be more effective,” regretted Sébastien Gardillou, Nice’s coach.
At the restart, the Niçoises showed a different face, but stumbled against the in-form Nîmes goalkeepers (14 saves from 37 shots) and a lack of success. Bandelier, Rocha, and Chavez found the gap in Nîmes’ defense, and Nice timidly closed the gap (14-17, 38th). The OGC Nice players chased the score and even lost their way ten minutes from the end (17-23, 49th). Beatriz Escribano, in form since the start of the season, called for a rally and finally scored her team’s first penalty in the 50th minute. Following this, Samira Rocha and Béatrice Edwige scored and brought the small crowd at Charles Ehrmann to their feet (22-23, 55th). But hope was quickly dashed by another penalty from Chebbah followed by a counter goal (22-25, 57th). Rocha’s penalty changed nothing, and Nice fell 26-23; they will need to win by four goals next weekend on Nîmes’ court to reach the Coupe de la Ligue quarter-finals.
“We played a good second half, but it wasn’t enough. We limited the damage, there’s still a return match. It’s frustrating because we should win this match even though this competition is not the club’s main objective. We have a week to find solutions,” admitted Hélène Falcon, OGC Nice Handball goalkeeper.
