Day 13, Group B: Spandau 04 Berlin (GER) v Astralpool Sabadell (ESP) 10-11
With no real pressure, the teams offered a fine and entertaining match which already produced some twists in the first period. Spandau jumped to a 2-0 lead, only to see Sabadell hitting back with a 0-4 rush – but Marin Restovic managed to equalise in 63 seconds, so the action-packed opening period ended in a 4-4 tie.
Sabadell could take the lead three times in the following quarter and Spandau could had the answers only twice, so it stood 6-7 at halftime. The third pushed the game onto a different track as the hosts hit two to retake the lead at 8-7, before Josep Bonet equalised. Spandau could lead once more with Luca Marziali’s magnificent centre-shot, but Bernat Sanahuja put the Spaniards’ following man-up away right from the next possession.
The final chapter began at 9-9 and after two and a half minutes of battling Sanahuja buried a penalty for 9-10. Spandau missed a 6 on 4, then a simple man-up and another one three minutes before the end and that cost them the game. With 1:48 to go, Kanstantin Averka’s action goal doubled Sabadell’s lead and Denis Strelezkij’s man-up shot came a bit late, with 47 seconds from time. The home side had one more possession but couldn’t create any danger – so it happened: Sabadell managed to win an away-game for the first time in the CL season.
How they saw it
Athanasios Kechagias, coach, Spandau
“Congratulations for the team of Sabadell, they had a very good game. It was all in all a good game with a very good pace, resulting a very tight match. In a game like this every small detail count, one goal, one shoot, one extraman – everything. And these details favoured Sabadell this evening.”
Quim Colet, coac, Sabadell
“It was a very good game where we claimed our first victory away from home.
My team is a very young, for us the big goal was to make one step up before the Spanish championship final against Barceloneta. But after this match everyone can see that we are ready for those games.”
