In a vibrant match, two Brazilian teams faced each other, Taubaté vs Nacional. The locals had the support of the audience that filled the Emecal Gymnasium in the SCA Handball Clubs. The victory went to Taubaté by the minimum 25-24.
As expected, the local team opened the scoring after 30 seconds, scoring 3 goals in a row, but Nacional quickly knew how to tie the score and turn it around, being up by 2 goals. The adrenaline was taking over more and more of the game, goal by goal, but Taubaté could not overcome this minimal difference, ending the first half 14-16 in favor of the team coached by Francisco Stringhini.
In the second half of the game, both teams came out with a much more comfortable defense, and the goalkeepers of both teams put on a show of saves. In the 25th minute, Taubaté surprised by tying the game, giving it an unprecedented twist and taking the lead on the scoreboard. Nacional decided to change their players at 5-1 to mark the opposing team’s center back as he had very good vision to find space. The match ended 25 for Taubaté, 24 for Nacional. The MVP of the match was Gustavo Andrade of Taubaté.
Post-match comments:
LissandroSantos, player of Nacional: “It was a great match, I think we put on a great show, unfortunately it was not the result we expected, now let’s rest, we have a next game tomorrow”.
Pedro Sosa Saitx, player of Taubaté: “We played a good game, at our own pace and we did what the coach told us to do. We knew it was going to be a complicated game, last year we played this team in the National League, it was good to play at home with the fans cheering from the beginning. Now let’s rest, because tomorrow we have a semifinal”.
Photo: CoSCABal/Germán Paez
By Martina Gallo
