Fertiberia drop a point against European contenders Cuenca

Fertiberia Balonmano Puerto Sagunto dropped a point against Liberbank Ciudad Encantada after drawing 26–26 in a closely contested first half, before building a substantial lead in the second. Nerves and rushed play in the closing minutes denied them victory against one of the teams at the top of the table.

The red-and-whites came out a little cold at the Ovni. Cuenca, who were tough in defence, dominated the opening minutes and took the lead. But the red-and-white defence and Bruixola soon stopped the visitors. A superb Toni Alegre on the wing and a flawless playmaker in Dija reduced the deficit and turned the score around in the 11th minute. The match became a back-and-forth contest, with the teams going into half-time at 13–12.

After the interval, rather than being intimidated, the red-and-whites produced a 4–1 run, prompting Cuenca to call a time-out to halt Nogués’s team’s excellent start to the second half. Bruixola continued to keep the goal shut, and although Lidio Jiménez’s side kept trying to turn the score around, the red-and-whites, supported by their fans, held firm. Cuenca pressed in the closing minutes and managed to draw level in the final minute.

The red-and-white coach, Vicent Nogués, highlighted that “in principle, it was a difficult match against a European team, but things went well for us until the closing minutes. We took the lead and even built a sizeable advantage, and we should have finished the match in that situation. We gradually allowed them back into the game and, in the end, the unforced errors killed us. We did not know how to manage the lead we had built. We leave feeling foolish because we were the ones who lost the point.”

The match was attended by the President of the Spanish Royal Handball Federation, Paco Blázquez, and the next match will be on Tuesday, 11 February, at 20:45 at the Logroño Sports Palace.

Match details:

Fertiberia BM Puerto Sagunto: Jaka (4), Leo Querín, Dorado, Óscar Camacho (3), Adrián Ribes, Guillermo Corzo (2), Iñigo Celorrio, Toni Alegre (5), Dija (9), Óscar García, Ángel López (1), Alex Pozzer (2)

Liberbank Ciudad Encantada: Dutra (3), Ariel (1), Natan (2), Patrik, Hugo López, Moscariello (4), Samuel Ibáñez, Thiago Alves (9), Pablo Miguel, Eskericic (2), Sergio López (5), Maciel, Alejandro Taravilla.

Scores: 2–2, 4–4, 7–6, 8–9, 11–10, 13–12, 16–13, 18–16, 22–17, 22–19, 23–21, 26–26

Officials: Jorde Ausas and Miquel Florenza. Fertiberia BM Puerto Sagunto players Jaka, Toni, Dija and Óscar García were excluded. For Liberbank, Linde, Ponciano and Eskericic were excluded.

Translation produced using artificial intelligence.