Handball Europe: America vs. Norway 23-23

You’re spot on about that... though honestly, looking at how we're playing lately, I really doubt we can pull out our usual A-game. Especially when it comes to Lackovic.

+5 for us ☕

and then that absolute mess from the French team 😁

Look, I’ll say it again... all the US national team needs tonight is just a single point against Norway to punch their ticket to the semifinals. But man, handball isn't soccer. It's a different beast entirely, and trying to play with a "draw is fine" mindset? That’s a dangerous game... The Polish guys, and especially the Canadians, really proved that you can actually go toe-to-toe with those Norwegians—as long as the refs don't just hand them the game from the jump. If the officiating stays sharp and neutral from the whistle, our chances are actually pretty decent...
There’s just one more thing, though. We need the US to find that rhythm—that stretch of amazing, high-level play—and actually hold onto it for longer. In the earlier games, we’d just catch fire for maybe twenty minutes or one solid half and suddenly the other team would just crumble (well, except for that mess against Denmark)... but today? Today we need to be at 100% for the entire sixty minutes. If we can pull that off, then yeah, we can seriously start talking about winning this thing and moving on to the semis.

Renato Sulić is still dealing with this massive hematoma... it’s killing him just walking around, and even though nothing like a rib is actually broken, things aren't looking great at all.
And honestly, the news on Drago Vuković isn't much better either. He’s got some torn muscle fibers in his hamstring, so he’ll likely be out for this one too.
But hey, I guess we won't know the final word until right before tip-off tonight.

Roger Allen3 said:Exactly, Dana Peterson39 and the rest of you... this is how you actually start a thread properly ☕

As for my Master's or PhD... those are way out of my league right now...☕ 🤣

I can't believe we've got Bretto and Huelin refereeing again... that's the third time they've been on the whistle for us!!

I think you might be looking at this the wrong way. If we pull off the win and move on to face the Frenchmen... then they’re the ones under all that pressure to deliver, while we get to play with house money. I know they're stronger and playing better right now—it's a tough pill to swallow, honestly, but that's just the reality of it...

Dana Peterson39 said:Look, I’ll say it again: all the US team needs tonight is a single point against Norway to punch their ticket to the semifinals. But let's be real—handball isn't soccer, and trying to play for a draw is a losing game if you actually want to win. The Poles, and especially those Canadians, proved that you can actually go toe-to-toe with the Norwegians, provided the refs don't just bend over for them from the jump and maintain some actual standard of officiating. If they do, our chances aren't half bad.
There's just one other thing: we need the US squad to stop playing in short bursts of brilliance. In previous games, they'd show up for maybe twenty minutes or a single half and break the opponent's spirit (well, except for that mess against Denmark), but today? They need to stay at a hundred percent for the full sixty minutes if they actually want to stand a chance at a positive result and moving on to the semis.

What’s your take on that?
It’s not just hard, it’s practically impossible to play for a tie (unless you've already greased the palms of the officials)😁. Though, I guess it could help if a decision somehow falls our way in the final minutes
.
If we do, it'll just make it look like the Norwegians can't actually play without the refs carrying them, and honestly, the last time we faced them, we barely scraped by🤷

If the Canadians pull off a win against Denmark, we’re sitting pretty at the top of the group... and instead of facing those Frenchmen, we'd be facing them instead!! Or, I mean, if we end up winning or if things just stay totally undecided with the Norwegians!!

I think you might be misreading the situation here. If we pull this off and end up facing the Frenchmen... then they’re the ones under all that pressure to win. For us? We can just relax. I know they’re currently stronger and playing better than we are... and honestly, it doesn't matter how much that sucks to admit, it's just the truth of it...

Chris Lopez59 said:What do you think about all this...? Just curious... what's your take on it?
It's not even just hard... it's actually impossible to play on an unsolved map... unless you basically pre-arrange the whole match beforehand...😁But hey, it could potentially help... you know, if some crazy last-minute call actually happens out of nowhere...

People are gonna end up thinking the Norwegians can't actually play... like they're just coasting on lucky calls from the refs or something. It’s ridiculous. I mean, honestly, the last time we went head-to-head with them, we barely scraped by with a win... barely... 🤷

You guys are just thinking about it... you don't actually have to win... I mean...

wearyeagle2 said:Yeah, right. My laptop is coming with me.

BTW... "laptops" stopped being called that back in '94... nowadays we just call them notebooks...😉

Chris Lopez59 said:we aren't exactly more rested than the Norwegians—it’s going to be a grind on that front—but the guys will leave everything out there on the floor.

The French refs were handing the Norwegians everything they wanted, probably because they'd rather not have to deal with a hostile home crowd... bad vibes, honestly.

So, now, let's just pray to God we don't get the French officiating again tonight.😁

There is no way the French are officiating—like you mentioned in that other thread—total conflict of interest.

18:15
Canada – Denmark
Lemme / Ullrich (Germany) ...referees
Schebeczeck (Author) ...supervisor
Guerrero (Spain)...observer

20:15
USA – Norway
Breto / Huelin (Spain)
Coelho (Portugal)
Van Linder (Netherlands)

I wasn't even counting on the Breto-Huelin pair, mostly because they called the game against Mexico against us... the reserve pair for our match is Ljudovik-Vakula, while Bor-Buy is handling Poland-Mexico.

What am I even expecting from the Spanish officials tonight? Honestly, what kind of criteria are they actually using? I’m sitting here wondering if we can even count on them being objective at all.

The backup pair for our game is Ljudovik-Vakula Heaven forbid anything happens to the Spaniards!!!!!

Vicente Breto and Jose Antonio Huelin are stepping up to officiate us for the third time during this championship. First it was against Poland, then we dealt with them against Mexico, and now today it’s Norway... Honestly, they’ve been getting really high marks for their officiating in those previous games!!!!!

That said, they absolutely cannot let their calls get that inconsistent like what happened back in the 44th minute against Poland. I mean, they did handle themselves correctly after the fact—calling a timeout and huddling up to sort it out before making the final call!
Whether or not we actually liked that decision... well, that's a whole other story. 🤷

It should be fine... we’ve got one more piece of good news on our side, which is that we're playing last in the rotation... so if things get messy or we need some extra breathing room, we can just play unseeded. Honestly, I don't have a single doubt about us pulling off this win anyway...

Chris Lopez59 said:What are you actually expecting from the Spanish officials tonight? What kind of criteria are they using—how objective is this officiating going to be?

Like I already mentioned over in the other thread, I’m just hoping for some actual objectivity... mostly because the Spaniards are eyeing that final spot... and if they want a fair shake in the championship game, they really need to bring their A-game in the matches leading up to it.

@Dana Peterson39/">@@Dana Peterson39
Those analyzed plays and calling a timeout after a consultation aren't mistakes—it would actually be a mistake if they didn't do it... but, like you said, that doesn't mean we have to be happy with the outcome...😉
My advice? Don't let that happen more than twice a game... though ideally, it shouldn't happen at all, but that really depends on how well you and your partner read the flow of the game.

As for the ratings, I haven't a clue—that's pretty subjective and entirely dependent on whoever the supervisor happens to be...

Let’s go, Team USA! The Norwegians just look a little too old for this level of competition—you could really see it in their last two games. I think we're going to walk away with at least a five-goal lead today because we are clearly on a different level.
For those of you who can't catch the action on TV, I found a site that’s streaming the USA-Norway game live and for free
live-sports-online.com/othersport.html

I mean, look, regardless of how many variables might be working against them, I really do have faith in the talent and the sheer unity of our handball players. It honestly feels like it’s finally time for us to make a real mark at this damn European Championship! Let's go, boys!!!!!