The task seemed daunting for Cavigal when hosting the leader of the Proligue championship, Saran. Especially as the Nice team was deprived of their captain, the Spanish left-back Joan Amigó Boada.
Nine victories in eleven games. That is the record of the Saran Loiret team. 8th in the championship before this twelfth day of Proligue, Cavigal Nice Handball was therefore expecting a tricky encounter. But coach Asier Antonio’s protégés delivered a great performance.
The Saran team quickly set the tone with a long-distance shot from Brazilian left-back Uelington Ferreira Da Silva. The start of the match was complicated for the Nice team. Mathieu Diaz was given a two-minute penalty after a push in the back. Saran’s right-back, Quentin Eymann, widened the gap with a shot from the edge of the area (0-2, 3rd minute).
But Cavigal finally got into their game, following in the wake of their Argentinian international Manuel Crivelli. The Nice center half found a gap in the opposing defense, then provoked a seven-meter throw converted by left-winger Jérémi Pirani (2-2, 5th minute). In a match start interrupted by the referee’s whistles, the Nice team fared better. Alexis Bon, with a set attack, and Jürgen Rooba, on a counterattack, gave Cavigal the lead for the first time in the match (4-3, 7th minute).
The locals showed great defensive solidity against a team disoriented by the Nice pressing. The team from the Côte d’Azur made a first break thanks to second goals from Bon, after a superb lob over the goalkeeper, and from Crivelli, again on a counterattack (7-4, 11th minute). This forced the visiting coach, Fabien Courtial, to take a first timeout.
A well-timed timeout for the visitors. Saran went back on the offensive thanks to the power of pivot Hadrien Ramond, who scored two consecutive goals (7-6, 12th minute). But the Nice team showed ruthless efficiency. They were patient, circulated the ball intelligently, and eventually found an opening on Pirani’s left wing, scoring his third goal (9-6, 14th minute).
The two teams exchanged blow for blow. The visitors closed the score gap after a seven-meter throw from Théo Avelange-Demouge and a goal from Ferreira Da Silva (9-8, 16th minute). The visitors even managed to equalize following a goal from Ramond, whose power was devastating (10-10, 18th minute).
However, the Nice team responded well. Bon was unforgiving from long range, and pivot Théo Gaspari gave his team some breathing room after a turnover from Saran (12-10, 20th minute). Both teams were highly effective in attack. Avelange-Demouge, Saran’s right-winger, equalized after two more seven-meter throws (13-13, 23rd minute).
But once again, Nice pushed forward. After a magnificent individual play from left-back Matthieu Limousin, Pirani widened the gap again with a seven-meter throw (15-13, 27th minute). With a 74% shooting success rate in the first half, the young Nice team even pulled away after a goal from Baptiste Gaillard, perfectly positioned on his right wing (16-13, 28th minute). At halftime, Cavigal created the surprise (17-14).
A perfectly managed second half
In contrast to the first half, the locals attacked the second half with great energy. Gaspari, from close range, allowed the Nice team to widen the lead (18-14, 31st minute). Eymann, Saran’s right-back, was given a two-minute penalty, which Limousin capitalized on to worsen the scoreline (19-14, 33rd minute).
The second half was much tighter. Both goalkeepers, Gretar Ari Gudjonsson for Nice and Nicolas Gauthier for Saran, made several decisive saves. In this scenario, the advantage went to the locals, who were well organized defensively and very precise in attack, led by a stellar Alexis Bon, who scored 8 goals with 100% shooting accuracy (24-19, 43rd minute).
Saran began to close in. Spanish left-winger Jordi Deumal first reduced the gap with a counterattack, then Eymann, from long range, brought the visitors closer (25-22, 47th minute). It was then that Cavigal’s Icelandic goalkeeper, Gudjonsson, rose to the occasion with a magnificent double save in front of Avelange-Demouge and Deumal.
Despite this impressive save, the visitors continued to gain ground on the scoreboard. Belgian center half Robyns and that relentless Avelange-Demouge allowed Saran to believe in their chances as the match approached its end (26-24, 50th minute).
Despite this brief lull in attack, the Nice team pushed forward again. Pivot Axel Oppedisano gave his team some breathing room after a seven-meter throw (29-26, 54th minute). Pirani, once again positioned on his wing, provided a small margin for his team (30-26, 55th minute).
The Nice team eventually soared with new goals from Pirani and Oppedisano. In the end, Cavigal secured a prestigious victory over the championship leader (34-29). With this success, the team from the Côte d’Azur likely found the benchmark match of their season. They will now need to confirm this impressive victory in Angers next week.
Reactions:
Alexis Bon (right-back of Cavigal Nice Handball): “After our poor start to the season, we’ve had several good matches. It was a strong team opposite us, they were the leader. But at home, we can beat anyone, and I hope this continues. Plus, we were missing our captain. We are very happy tonight. We are ambitious, but our main goal is to secure our position as quickly as possible so we can play more freely. If we can reach the playoffs, so much the better, but we remain focused on maintaining our standing.”
Jérémi Pirani (left-winger of Cavigal Nice Handball): “Honestly, I think they had more quality than us. They have a strong squad with more rotations. As soon as we dropped intensity, they gave us a wake-up call. You could say it was an achievement because Cavigal isn’t equipped to compete for the top positions. We work hard, and winning this match is an accomplishment. Next week, we’re going to Angers, a direct competitor for staying up. It will be a very important match. We won’t underestimate this team. Just because we beat Saran this week doesn’t mean we will beat Angers next week. Every match is challenging, especially away. We’ll rest well this weekend and get back to work on Monday. It will be an important match, one that we must win because it’s against a direct rival.”
