For this 22nd day of the Proligue, Cavigal Nice Handball traveled to face Massy Essonne Handball. A match that ended in a 28-25 defeat for the team from Nice, even though they were leading at halftime.
Cavigal wanted to bounce back after their last draw against Sarrebourg (27-27). It didn’t work out for Asier Antonio and his men, who faltered in the final minutes of a closely contested match.
Cavigal takes the lead at halftime
In this scrappy start to the match, Massy’s and Nice’s players were engaged in fierce duels. The two opponents countered each other but delivered an engaging game (2-2; 4-4; 7-6). The score kept changing sides from one team to the other. But after fifteen minutes of play, it was Cavigal that began to distance itself from Massy in this first half (7-10; 9-11) thanks to the goals by Jérémi Pirani and Jurgen Rooba, both scoring seven and six goals respectively throughout the match.
Despite some blocked shots and saves by Massy’s goalkeeper, Jérémy Hakkar, Massy remained in contention. Nice went into the locker room with a one-point lead (12-13). Nothing was settled yet.
Massy turns the situation around
Seven minutes after the restart, both teams continued to neutralize each other; neither managed to widen the score gap. Nice still held a slight lead (14-15; 15-16) until Edson Imare (Massy), with a successful counter-attack, gave his team the lead (17-16).
Midway through the second half, Massy drove the point home and secured a two-goal advantage over the visitors from Nice (21-19; 22-20). But Nice refused to be defeated and attempted to counter Massy’s attacks. In the goals, the keepers had to intervene multiple times. Gretar Gudjonnson (Nice) made 13 saves during the game, while Jérémy Hakkar made nine, most of them in the second half, helping Massy maintain their lead.
The numerous turnovers slowed the game, and the two competitors still couldn’t pull away on the scoreboard (24-22). It wasn’t until the 55th minute that Massy surged towards victory (25-22; 27-23; 28-24). This was too much for Nice, who eventually bowed out 28-25. Axel Oppedisano’s (Nice) last effort did not change the outcome, and Cavigal could harbor some regrets against a tough opponent.
Next weekend, Nice, ranked 7th, will travel to the Grand Est to challenge Grand Nancy, who are in 3rd place and only three points behind leader Saran. A match that promises to be even more challenging for Asier Antonio and his squad.
