Irun hosts Barcelona in a Liga ASOBAL battle at the top of the table. It could be the best chance for an ASOBAL foe to knock off Barca this season.
The Women’s European Championship wraps up this weekend, but at the same time, there’s still plenty of Men’s pro club action. Odds courtesy of Bet MGM.
American Athletes in Action
Germany HBL 2: TV Emsdetten (Pick em) vs TSV Bayer Dormagen (pickn (Friday, 1930 CET): Link (VPN required)
Ian and Patrick Hueter play for Dormagen. Dormagen hung tough with co-league leaders, Hamburg earlier in the week for most of the way, but ended up losing 32-26. They will be looking to rebound with 2 points vs Emsdetten, a team that is currently in the relegation zone.
You also might want to check out this video feature on the Hueter Brothers: Link (in German).
France Pro Ligue: Angers vs Besancon (Friday, 2000 CET): Link
Abou Fofana plays for Angers. Last weekend Angers had a dismal 28-20 loss to Sarrebourg, another struggling team at the bottom of the league table. On Friday night they get a chance to end the first half of the season on a positive note as they host Besancon a team just 4 points ahead of them in the standings.
Spain Liga Asobal: Huesca vs Leon (-1.5) (Saturday, 1800 CET): Link
Circle Runner, Drew Donlin plays for Leon. Should be a good battle between 4th place Leon and 5th place Huesca. <<Postponed due to positive COVID tests>>
Paul Bray: 30+ Years and Over 2,000 Handball Matches
Perhaps you’ve been enjoying the 2020 Women’s European Handball Championship and the commentary provided by Paul Bray for the matches in Herning. What you may not know, however, is that Bray has been commentating on handball for over 30 years. Yes, he was commentating even when I was still playing. I’ll never forget watching watching matches during the 1993 World Championships in our hotel room and everyone laughing at the British voice calling an offensive foul… barging.
The IHF World Handball magazine has a great story on Paul Bray to mark his now 30 years of handball commentary. (See images below; for some reason it’s not available yet at the IHF website) It’s a wonderful trip down memory lane for old timers and some great education for newcomers as to just how far handball broadcasts have come.
Some of the same history was covered in this podcast interview with Paul Bray from the 2007 World Championships in Germany. We even speculated a bit about how web streaming might help the sport in the years to come. Dare I say it: we even seem prescient.
Upstarts Croatia take on Germany in one of two direct duel matches for a semifinal berth. (Denmark vs Russia is the other)
It’s decision day for the 2020 Women’s European Handball Championships as the final day of Main Round Group play concludes with 6 matches. When the dust settles we’ll know who will play who in the semifinals on Friday. Here are the standings, scenarios, video links, odds and some preview articles that were written before these matches were played.
Tuesday, 15 December All Times Local (CET) / US ET is -6 hrs) Odds courtesy of BetMGM
Main Round Group I (Herning, Denmark)
Main Round Group I Standings (Prior to Matches on 15 Dec)
Main Round Group I Daily Preview at the Euro 2020 official site: Link
16:00 Montenegro vs Spain (-1.5) (Live on ehfTV) (Commentary: Paul Bray)
18:15 France (-5.5) vs Sweden (Live on ehfTV) (Commentary: Paul Bray)
20:30 Denmark vs Russia (-1.5) (Live on ehfTV and beIN Sports Xtra: How to watch (Commentary: Paul Bray)
France will play Sweden first and then Denmark will take on Russia. Here are the 9 different possible outcomes for the combination of results for those 2 matches:
Main Round Group I Scenarios
Scenarios to Make the Semifinals
Here is what each nation needs to do to advance to the semifinals:
Denmark: Denmark has to beat Russia in order to qualify for the semifinals.
France: If France wins or draws vs Sweden they will qualify for the semifinals. If France loses to Sweden they can still qualify if Russia beats Denmark or the Russia-Denmark match is a draw. They can even still qualify if Russia loses to Denmark, but it is a mathematical improbability. (See note below)
Russia: If Russia wins or draws vs Denmark they will qualify for the semifinals. If Russia loses to Denmark they will still likely qualify if Sweden beats France. (See note below)
What About 1st Place and Avoiding Norway?
Norway has looked very strong and has already won Main Round Group II. This means finishing first in the Group and avoiding Norway in the semifinals is highly desirable.
There are multiple scenarios, but Russia is in the strongest position as they are likely to win any tiebreakers with France. France is in the next strongest position as they win any tiebreakers with Denmark. Finally, Denmark does have one possibility for finishing first: Demark beating Russia and Sweden beating France
A side note on a mathematical improbability*
Russia and France are level on points and played to a 28-28 draw earlier in the competition. This means that should they finish level on points the first tiebreaker will be goal differential in all matches. Russia is currently +14 and France is +5. This means that if both France/Russia lose or both France/Russia win, France would have to gain 10 goals on Russia in the matches played. While this is possible given the teams playing it seems unlikely that much ground could be made up. Additionally, Russia playing second would know exactly what margin they would need to maintain a goal differential advantage.
Main Round Group II (Kolding, Denmark)
Main Round Group II Standings (Prior to Matches on 15 Dec)
Main Round Group II Daily Preview at the Euro 2020 official site: Link
16:00 Netherlands (-4.5) vs Romania (Live on ehfTV) (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
18:15 Croatia vs Germany (-1.5) (Live on ehfTV) (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
20:30 Hungary vs Norway (-7.5) (Live on ehfTV) (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
Norway is undefeated and has already beaten Germany and Croatia so no matter the outcomes of matches played Tuesday they will finish first. This leaves Croatia and Germany fighting for 2nd. The Netherlands can no longer qualify, but their match vs the Romania may have an impact on which team gets second. Here are the 9 different possible outcomes for the combination of results for those 2 matches:
Main Round Group II Scenarios
Scenarios to Make the Semifinals
Here is what each nation needs to do to advance to the semifinals:
Norway: Norway is guaranteed to finish first. Their match vs Hungary will have no bearing on the final standings.
Croatia: If Croatia wins or draws vs Germany they will qualify for the semifinals. If the Netherlands beats Romania they can also still qualify for the semifinals with a 1 goal loss to Germany. (See note below)
Germany: If Germany wins vs Croatia they will qualify for the semifinals. They will also have to win by 2 goals in the Netherlands beats Romania. (See note below)
Why the Netherlands has been eliminated, but their match with Romania could still impact qualification
Should the Netherlands beat Romania and Germany beat Croatia all three teams will be level on 6 points. The next tiebreaker is head to head goal differential n the 3 matches played. The table below depicts the current goal differential for each team and how that goal differential will change based on Germany’s margin of victory in the their match vs Croatia
As you can see the Netherlands has already played their two matches and is stuck at -1 goal differential. And, it is a mathematical impossibility for a -1 goal differential to ever head to the top of the table. If the Netherland had managed a 2 or larger goal win they would have had ever increasing chances. As it is, however, Croatia goes through if Germany wins by 1. If Germany wins by two or more they will go through to the semifinals.
A big challenge for Dormagen and the Hueter brothers on Tuesday
The 2020 EHF Women’s Handball European Championships is in full swing, but there’s still plenty of Men’s club action to watch this week as well. Here’s a summary of the next 3 days.
American Athletes in Action
Germany HBL 2: Hamburg (-3.5) vs Dormagen (Tuesday, 1800 CET): Link (VPN Required)
The Hueter brothers, Ian and Patrick play for Dormagen
Dormagen looked sharp last Friday, a 27-19 victory over Hamm-Westphalia. Now they travel to Hamburg to take on 2nd place Hamburg. A side with clear aspirations to move up to the HBL next season
Hungary K&H League: Gyöngyös vs Eger (Wednesday, 1800 CET): Link
GK, Pal Merkovszki, plays for Gyongyos
This will be the last game of the year for Gyongyos
Check out Merkovszki from this match earlier vs Komlo: Link
The Netherlands narrow 28-27 victory over Germany has made things clearing in Main Round Group II. Here are the standings with just the Hungary-Romania match remaining prior to the final match day on Tuesday.
Main Round Group II Standings (After NED-GER Match)
Norway is undefeated and has already beaten Germany and Croatia so no matter the outcomes of matches played Tuesday they will finish first. This leaves Croatia and Germany fighting for 2nd. The Netherlands can no longer qualify, but their match vs the Romania may have an impact on which team gets second. Here are the 9 different possible outcomes for the combination of results for those 2 matches:
Main Round Group II Scenarios
Scenarios to Make the Semifinals
Here is what each nation needs to do to advance to the semifinals:
Norway: Norway is guaranteed to finish first. Their match vs Hungary will have no bearing on the final standings.
Croatia: If Croatia wins or draws vs Germany they will qualify for the semifinals. If the Netherlands beats Romania they can also still qualify for the semifinals with a 1 goal loss to Germany. (See note below)
Germany: If Germany wins vs Croatia they will qualify for the semifinals. They will also have to win by 2 goals in the Netherlands beats Romania. (See note below)
Why the Netherlands has been eliminated, but their match with Romania could still impact qualification
Should the Netherlands beat Romania and Germany beat Croatia all three teams will be level on 6 points. The next tiebreaker is head to head goal differential n the 3 matches played. The table below depicts the current goal differential for each team and how that goal differential will change based on Germany’s margin of victory in the their match vs Croatia
As you can see the Netherlands has already played their two matches and is stuck at -1 goal differential. And, it is a mathematical impossibility for a -1 goal differential to ever head to the top of the table. If the Netherland had managed a 2 or larger goal win they would have had every increasing chances. As it is, however, Croatia goes through if Germany wins by 1. If Germany wins by two or more they will go through to the semifinals.
The Netherlands and Germany square off today in a Main Round match that both need to win to improve their chances of qualifying for the semifinals. The Netherlands is a 1.5 goal favorite, but I’m taking them with an alternative handicap bet of -2.5 goals at +155. Here’s my rationale for this pick.
The Netherlands are the defending World Champions. Yes, they miss Estavana Polman big time. At times during the European Championships it’s been almost painful to watch how anemic their attack has been. But, after 4 matches they are starting to show some signs of life. In particular, their 2nd half (15-16) vs Norway on Sunday was a good sign.
Germany’s match vs Norway, an eye popping 42-23 loss shows what can happen to Germany if things go south a bit. As, in they can really, really go south. Could strong defense and goal keeping from Tess Wester lead to a flurry of fast breaks? Yes, it sure could.
The only scenario for the Netherlands to make the semifinals requires that there be a 3 way tie at 6 points with the Netherlands, Germany and Croatia. The Netherlands lost to Croatia 27-25 so they are already at -2. This hole means that they really need to win by 4 or 5 goals to get their margin up to +2 or +3. Even higher would be better.
Honestly, if Bet MGM was offering -3.5 or -4.5 I probably would look at putting a wager at that handicap too.
The 2020 Women’s European Handball Championships continues with 2 main round matches from Group II. Here are the standings, odds and links to a preview article that was written before these matches were played.
Monday, 14 December All Times Local (CET) / US ET is -6 hrs) Odds courtesy of BetMGM
Main Round Group II (Kolding, Denmark)
Main Round Group II Standings (Prior to Matches on 14 Dec)
The Netherlands and Germany play first and and both teams still have chances to make the semifinals. A German win or draw in today’s match will set up a winner take all match between Germany and Croatia tomorrow.
A Netherlands victory in today’s match will keep their hopes alive, but they can only qualify on Tuesday if the final table results in a 3 way tie between Croatia, Germany and the Netherlands. Should that happen only the results of the 3 matches between the teams will count. As a result, Netherlands not only needs to win, they need to win by several goals to improve their chances of reaching the semifinals. At a minimum, they need to win by 2 goals. And, with each goal higher than 2 they improve their chances.
The Hungary vs Romania match is strictly for pride and will have no bearing on the semifinals. Main Round Group II Daily Preview at the Euro 2020 official site: Link
18:15 Netherlands (-1.5) vs Germany (Live on ehfTV and beIN Sports Xtra: How to watch) Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
20:30 Hungary (-1.5) vs Romania (Live on ehfTV and beIN Sports Xtra: How to watch) Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
Only three teams (Russia, France and Denmark) can still advance from Main Round Group I. Two of these three teams will advance while the other will play for 5th place.
Main Round Group I Standings (Prior to Final Match Day)
On Tuesday, France will play Sweden first and then Denmark will take on Russia. Here are the 9 different possible outcomes for the combination of results for those 2 matches:
Main Round Group I Scenarios
Scenarios to Make the Semifinals
Here is what each nation needs to do to advance to the semifinals:
Denmark: Denmark has to beat Russia in order to qualify for the semifinals.
France: If France wins or draws vs Sweden they will qualify for the semifinals. If France loses to Sweden they can still qualify if Russia beats Denmark or the Russia-Denmark match is a draw. They can even still qualify if Russia loses to Denmark, but it is a mathematical improbability. (See note below)
Russia: If Russia wins or draws vs Denmark they will qualify for the semifinals. If Russia loses to Denmark they will still likely qualify if Sweden beats France. (See note below)
What About 1st Place and Avoiding Norway?
Norway has looked very strong and has already won Main Round Group II. This means finishing first in the Group and avoiding Norway in the semifinals is highly desirable.
There are multiple scenarios, but Russia is in the strongest position as they are likely to win any tiebreakers with France. France is in the next strongest position as they win any tiebreakers with Denmark. Finally, Denmark does have one possibility for finishing first: Demark beating Russia and Sweden beating France
A side note on a mathematical improbability*
Russia and France are level on points and played to a 28-28 draw earlier in the competition. This means that should they finish level on points the first tiebreaker will be goal differential in all matches. Russia is currently +14 and France is +5. This means that if both France/Russia lose or both France/Russia win, France would have to gain 10 goals on Russia in the matches played. While this is possible given the teams playing it seems unlikely that much ground could be made up. Additionally, Russia playing second would know exactly what margin they would need to maintain a goal differential advantage.
The 2020 Women’s European Handball Championships continues with 2 main round matches from Group I. Here are the video links, odds and some preview articles that were written before these matches were played.
Sunday, 13 December All Times Local (CET) / US ET is -6 hrs) Odds courtesy of BetMGM
Main Round Group I (Herning, Denmark)
Main Round Group I Standings (Prior to Matches on 13 Dec)
Montenegro and Sweden play first and since neither team can make the semifinals this match is for pride only. Spain has also been eliminated, but if Denmark can either pick up a draw or a win vs Spain their last match on Tuesday vs Russia will be for a semifinal spot. Main Round Group I Daily Preview at the Euro 2020 official site: Link
18:15 Montenegro (-1.5) vs Sweden (Live on ehfTV) (Commentary: Paul Bray)
20:30 Denmark (-2.5) vs Spain (Live on ehfTV and beIN Sports Xtra: How to watch) (Commentary: Paul Bray)
The 2020 Women’s European Handball Championships continues with 2 matches from Main Round Group II. Here are the standings, video links, odds and some preview articles that were written before these matches were played.
Saturday, 12 December All Times Local (CET) / US ET is -6 hrs) Odds courtesy of BetMGM
Main Round Group II (Kolding, Denmark)
Main Round Group II Standings (Prior to Matches on 12 Dec)
Hungary and Germany play their first Main Round match. Germany starts with 2 points and if they win out they can qualify for the semifinals. Hungary starts with no points and they will need some help in order to qualify. The second match features unbeaten sides, but there’s no doubt which team is considered the pretender and which one is the contender. Norway is a 9.5 goal favorite over Croatia. Main Round Group II Daily Preview at the Euro 2020 official site: Link
16:00 Hungary (-1.5) vs Germany (Live on ehfTV) Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
18:15 Croatia vs Norway (-9.5) (Live on ehfTV) Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
The 2020 Women’s European Handball Championships continues with 2 main round matches from Group I. Here are the video links, odds and some preview articles that were written before these matches were played.
Friday, 11 December All Times Local (CET) / US ET is -6 hrs) Odds courtesy of BetMGM
Main Round Group I (Herning, Denmark)
Main Round Group I Standings (Prior to Matches on 11 Dec)
Russia and France both hung on for victories yesterday and are tied at the top of the table. A win for either side doesn’t quite guarantee a semifinal, but it practically does. Denmark and Sweden play the nightcap and the winner there will keep their hopes for a semifinal berth alive. Main Round Group I Daily Preview at the Euro 2020 official site: Link
18:15 France (-1.5) vs Russia (Live on ehfTV and beIN Sports Xtra: How to watch Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
20:30 Denmark (-1.5) vs Swedem (Live on ehfTV and beIN Sports Xtra: How to watch Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
The Hueter brothers (Patrick and Ian) can be seen in action on Friday with their club Dormagen
Yes, the Women’s European Championship continues this weekend, but at the same time, there’s still plenty of Men’s pro club action. Odds courtesy of Bet MGM.
American Athletes in Action
Germany HBL 2: TSV Bayer Dormagen (pick em) vs Hamm-Westfalen (Friday, 1930 CET): Link (VPN required)
Ian and Patrick Hueter play for Dormagen. Dormagen had a disappointing lost last week and 2 points would put them level with Hamm.
You also might want to check out this video feature on the Hueter Brothers: Link (in German)
Hungary K&H League: HE-DO B. Braun Gyöngyös – Sport36-Komló 2020 (Saturday, 1800 CET): Link
Pal Merkovski plays in the #2 GK for Gyongyos.
France Pro Ligue: Sarrebourg (-1.5) vs Angers (Saturday, 1800 CET): Link Abou Fofana plays for Angers. If this was a U.S. league this battle between the last 2 teams in the standings would be meaningless. But, with a
Spain Liga Asobal: Leon (-2.5) vs Valladolid (Saturday, 1825 CET): Link
Circle Runner, Drew Donlin plays for Leon. Should be a good battle between 5th place Leon and 8th place Valladolid. Both clubs typically have aspirations for a European competition slot.
Other Matches this Weekend
EHF European Competitions: ehfTV
With the exception of some makeup games the European competitions will be off now until February. You might want to check out the Match of the week played earlier this week: Elverum vs Flensburg (English commentary)
Can surprise team, Croatia, get a little respect in the main round?
The 2020 Women’s European Handball Championships shifts to the main round with 2 matches each from Main Round Groups I and II. Here are the video links, odds and some preview articles that were written before these matches were played.
Thursday, 10 December All Times Local (CET) / US ET is -6 hrs) Odds courtesy of BetMGM
Main Round Group I (Herning, Denmark)
Main Round Group I Standings (Prior to Matches on 10 Dec)
Russia and France carried the maximum 4 points with them from the preliminary groups and with victories today they will be one step closer to qualifying for the semifinals. Main Round Group I Daily Preview at the Euro 2020 official site: Link
18:15 Montenegro vs Russia (-5.5) (Live on ehfTV and beIN Sports Xtra: How to watch Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
20:30 France (-3.5) vs Spain (Live on ehfTV and beIN Sports Xtra: How to watch Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
Main Round Group II (Kolding, Denmark)
Main Round Group II Standings (Prior to Matches on 10 Dec)
Norway will take on a Netherlands side that almost didn’t make it to the Main Round. Surprising Croatia will take on Romania. And, here’s a fun fact for you: Undefeated Croatia has yet to be favored in a match at the European Championships. As Rodney Dangerfield used to say, “I can’t get no respect.” For more on Croatia check out this podcast interview with Larissa Kalaus and Dora Krsnik: Link Main Round Group II Daily Preview at the Euro 2020 official site: Link
18:15 Croatia vs Romania (-1.5) (Live on ehfTV) Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
20:30 Netherlands vs Norway (-6.5) (Live on ehfTV) Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
