Fertiberia Balonmano Puerto Sagunto narrowly lose in the Comunitat derby

[caption id="attachment_18329" align="alignnone" width="912"] Arnau Fernández in the final action of the match / PEPA CONESA[/caption]

Fertiberia Balonmano suffered a narrow defeat this afternoon (28-29) in the Comunitat derby against Horneo EÓN Alicante in the 22nd round of the Men's Silver Honour Division, played at the Port de Sagunt Sports Hall.

 

The match began with the greatest possible equality in the opening moments, despite early suspensions for Dusan Trifkovic and Álvaro del Valle in the first five minutes. Goals from Sergio Torío and Arnau Fernández gave the home side their first leads of the match, while for the visitors Aarón Gutierrez kept his team in the game with as many as four goals in the first twelve minutes.

 

After several saves by Agustín Forlino, the Alicante side's goalkeeper, Daniel Martínez made his first save in the 10th minute. He improved as the match progressed in both the first and second halves. The first Port side gap came around the 20th minute, following the visitors' first suspension for Diego Vera. Fertiberia Balonmano Puerto Sagunto took advantage to establish their first two- and three-goal leads through goals from Joaquín Barceló and Álvaro del Valle, along with further saves from Daniel Martínez.

 

The Horneo EON Alicante coach was forced to call his first timeout of the match in the 24th minute, with the scoreboard reading 13-10. The switch to a more aggressive defence and Guilherme Leonel's suspension with two minutes remaining meant the half-time score was 14-11.

 

Horneo EÓN Alicante emerged from the changing rooms better, reducing the home side's lead from the outset with the tactical innovation of attacking with seven players without a goalkeeper. Fertiberia Balonmano Puerto Sagunto countered with a 5-1 defence, with Arnau Fernández in the advanced position, allowing them to launch counter-attacks and shoot at an empty net from the centre throw.

 

The match was now completely level, and Toni Malla was forced to call his second timeout in the 39th minute, with the score tied at 18-18. The Alicante side also improved their performance in transition, scoring several goals through Carlos Fernández.

 

The visitors' second timeout came in the 48th minute, as the home side began to regain the lead. After the interruption, they continued attacking with six players until the final whistle. Antonio Capitán, who had been hit by the ball in the first half, and Dani Fernández kept the home side's hopes of earning points alive this afternoon. Another tactical change by Horneo EÓN Alicante, switching back to a 6-0 defence, stalled the Port side on 26 goals. Nevertheless, they had one final possession and a last-second shot to level the score, but the outcome was ultimately unfavourable.

 

Despite today's defeat, Toni Malla's side will remain in the play-off places for another week. Next Saturday at 19:30, they will visit Handbol Club Eivissa at the Sa Blanca Dona Island Sports Centre in the 23rd round of the competition.

  MATCH DETAILS: Fertiberia Balonmano Puerto Sagunto (28):  Guilherme Leonel (1), Del Valle (3), Olba (5), Nico Rey (-), Daniel Martínez (-), Álex Plaza (3), Barceló (2), Arnau Fernández (3), Dusan Trifkovic (1), Gonzalo (-), David García (-), Mario (-), De Novais (4), Capitán (3), Seke (-), Torío (3).   Horneo EÓN Alicante (29): Karlos Rubio (1), Ander Torriko (6), Gabriel Navarro (1), Lorenzo Poyato (-), James Parker (4), Carlos Fernández (3), Julen Urruzola (1), Xabi Barreto (4), Alberto González (-), Didac Talens (-), Diego Vera (-), Josu Arzoz (2), Agustín Forlino (-), Aarón Gutiérrez (6), Darko Dimitrievski (1), Cauê Martins (-), Fernando Alcaraz (-).   Referees: Óscar García Camino and Alfredo Arcos Adeva.   Suspensions: Dusan Trikfovic, Álvaro del Valle, Diego Vera and Guilherme Leonel.   Score progression: 3-3, 6-5, 8-8, 10-9, 13-10, 14-11 (half-time); 17-15, 18-19, 21-22, 25-23, 26-26 and 28-29 (full-time).   Match notes: Match from the 22nd round of the Men's Silver Honour Division, played at the Port de Sagunt Sports Hall in front of approximately 1,000 spectators. Carlos Argente attended his first match as club president, accompanied by the Councillor for Sport, Javier Timón, and the President of the FCBMCV, Pedro Fuertes.  

Translation produced using artificial intelligence.