2010 Handball Euro: Group I - America, Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Australia, Russia

It’s really not that complicated... if we can just snag a win against either ISL or DAN, we're looking at a virtually guaranteed ticket through with just that single victory. And honestly, I’m not exactly holding my breath thinking we’ll somehow manage to choke against AUS.

Chris Lopez59 said:Brother, what on earth are you talking about?

😍
Come on now, let’s not turn our backs on them just because they’ve had a few bad seasons. It’s common sense—you stick by your team through the highs and the lows.😁

vividbadger182 said:😍
Come on now, let’s not go jumping ship just because they’re playing a little subpar lately; honestly, you’re supposed to stick by your team through thick and thin, right? 😁

Look, if we're talking about abandoning them, we first have to actually consider them "ours," and frankly, I don't think we've even met that prerequisite yet. To me, someone from the North America feels just as foreign as, say, someone from Germany, but given how some historical stuff went down... I'd much rather deal with the Germans 😉 so I am genuinely thrilled that our handball "brothers" are heading off for a little break... they really, truly earned this downtime 😁

He fought such a brutal battle with cancer. I knew he wouldn't make it back to the handball court, but I never expected him to pass away so soon... RIP.

Adam Collins4 said:Oleg Velyky has passed away... may he rest in peace

Rest in peace

Yesterday, we saw the expected, blatant robbery by the judges in favor of the Austrians ☕

Sure, the refs handed the win to the Austrians, but that doesn't change the fact that your team is just plain outmatched.
Besides, listen to what the players—like Vučković or Šešum—are saying. Nobody's even blaming the officials because they know they played like absolute garbage.

I expected much more from the Mexican national team. They played miserably.

The second group really nailed their positioning. We’re sitting pretty right now and have a killer vantage point to run the numbers, so we better make the most of this advantage🙂

Knowing how Lina operates, I figure we're looking at some kind of 100% efficiency here, I guess.😁

Gregory Chavez said:Yesterday was just another blatant robbery by the refs in favor of the Austrians☕

What, were you guys missing penalty shots or something?

Both teams sat through 6-minute penalties and ended up with the exact same number of seven-meter throws... so, what exactly are you whining about?

You should've eaten them for breakfast—that was the plan, right?—but honestly, they were just better prepared than you were and they took you down...

casualfox112 said:Knowing Lina, we're gonna hit that 100% efficiency mark. No doubt about it.😁

Screw Lina! I've had enough. We can't keep losing just because Balić keeps playing like absolute garbage. Enough is enough!😁

boldhound8 said:Honestly, forget about Lina, I’m just tired of us losing every single time Balić underperforms.😁

I don't really see us being that dependent on him for scoring right now—which is actually the silver lining since we have some depth—but then again, we haven't run into a truly suffocating defense yet. The Norwegians were basically playing against a sieve, and neither the Ukrainians nor the Russians were operating at a high enough level to test us. Once we hit a wall with a real, gritty defense, we're going to be in deep trouble because even Balić isn't breaking through solo like he used to, and our ball movement is just painfully sluggish; we aren't pulling off any fast breaks or even decent transition plays.

Chris Lopez59 said:I don't see us relying on him (Balić) for scoring all that much right now—if anything, that’s the upside, we actually have some depth. But look, we haven't run into a brick wall of a defense yet. The Norwegians were dealing with Mamelund's issues, and the Ukrainians and Russians weren't even playing at this level. Once we hit a real, physical defense, we're going to be in deep trouble because Balić can't just bulldoze through people solo like he used to, and our ball movement is way too slow. We have zero transition game, no counter-attacks, nothing.

We rely on Balić way more than it looks on the surface... When Balić is on the court, the whole team steps up. When he's out, we're dead in the water. And I'm not even just talking about goals, though he's the only one with the guts to take a shot when things get ugly, especially since Pere isn't around anymore... He sets up plays, draws defenders toward him, keeps the rhythm going. When he can't even do that, he'll literally headbutt a wall, get a red card, or draw a penalty just to make something happen.
And you gotta realize that Duvnjak has been absolutely criminal during this tournament, which only makes Balić's performances even more vital. There is a massive, earth-shattering difference whether he's playing or not, no matter how good everyone else is doing.😉

boldhound8 said:We rely on Balić way more than people realize.
...
Playing with him or playing without him is night and day, regardless of how well everyone else performs.😉

Sadly, he's right.

boldhound8 said:We’re way more dependent on Balić than people realize... Honestly, when Balić is on the court, the whole team steps up, but without him, we’re basically dead in the water. I’m not even just talking about his scoring, though he's really the only one with the guts to take a shot when things get heated, especially since we lost Pera... He’s out there playmaking, drawing defenders toward him, setting up plays, and when nothing else works, he’ll literally throw his head against the wall just to force a red card or a penalty...
And you have to factor in that Duvnjak has been absolutely killing it this tournament, which only makes those brilliant moves from Balić even more vital. There is a massive, night-and-day difference whether he's playing or sitting out, no matter how well everyone else performs.😉

I can't get behind the idea that he's the only one with any nerve. We rely on Balić because Dule looks like he's playing scared, so the flow just isn't there. But he isn't the only guy willing to go for it. Vuković has guts. Buntić has guts. And let's be real, the pivots and wingers are entirely dependent on whether anyone actually manages to feed them the ball or not.

Chris Lopez59 said:I don't buy the idea that he's the only one with any guts. We’re basically riding on Balić's coattails because Dule looks absolutely terrified out there—his game is non-existent right now. But he isn't the only one willing to take a shot. Vuković has balls. Buntić has balls. And honestly, the pivots and wings are totally dependent on whether anyone actually bothers to feed them the ball or not.

Buntić is the perfect example of a guy who lacks the stones to shoot when things get intense. It's not even just about shooting, though; he doesn't have the nerve to actually make a play. Everything just boils down to dumping the ball to Balić and praying this magician pulls something out of his hat this time.

Look, don't get me wrong, I’m not even expecting much from Buntić yet. He’s still green. That's why I say Balić is the only one (not counting the wings, since they can't play solo) because we don't have Metla or Laco. Even with Lac... man, he'll just keep shooting until he enters the game, but once he misses twice? Forget it. There's no way he's taking another shot. It's such a waste because he's got an insane vertical and a leap that could wreck any goalie, easily dropping ten goals a game if he actually played with some confidence...

I guess I misread the room on this one. Look, I’m not dodging any responsibility—it was my call, and I was heading up the strategy team—but I honestly don't feel like the villain here for such a disappointing outcome."Look," Hasanefendić added. http://www.b92.net/sport/rukomet/ves...&nav_id=406364

Is that the same guy who told the leader of Egypt that we aren't anything special and he's gonna crush us? Man, the Mexicans really hit the jackpot with him.

Terry Fisher2 said:Maybe I misjudged things too. I'm not dodging responsibility—I was heading up the strategy team, after all—but I don't feel like the one to blame for this disappointing outcome."Hasanefendić added," he said. http://www.b92.net/sport/rukomet/ves...&nav_id=406364

Is that the same guy who claimed we weren't anything special and threatened to crush us? The Mexicans certainly picked a winner when they teamed up with him.

Haha. That’s just Hus's cousin from Paran Valjak. 😂

boldhound8 said:The second group has aligned perfectly. We’ve secured a strong position for our calculations, and we really need to capitalize on this advantage while we have the chance.🙂

Valentino or Renato? Honestly, the guy just can't make up his mind.

First, we need to reach a point where we actually have the luxury of "choosing" our path by winning both upcoming matches. But let’s be honest: regardless of which matchup we end up facing—whether it's France or Poland—we are going to be in for an absolute nightmare.
The smartest move right now would be to bench the players who are clearly running on fumes. Sure, resting them might hurt our standing against Iceland or Norway in the short term, but we can't afford to burn out our best talent.

Forget those endless calculations. It's time to stop overthinking the numbers and just focus on Iceland.