HANDBALL – Bahrain suffered a tough 30-32 defeat to Asian champions Japan last night in their opening game of the 11th IHF Men’s Youth World Championship in Cairo, Egypt.
The kingdom’s under-19 squad battled hard throughout the Group G contest and were level at 15-all at half-time at Cairo Stadium Hall One.
But after they got to within 26-27 following an Ali Jadeed goal with just seven minutes to play, the Japanese replied with three unanswered conversions to begin pulling away. Sora Furusawa later scored on a penalty to make it 32-27 with just two minutes to go, virtually sealing the win.
Goals from Mohamed Abbas, Salman Alshowaikh, and Mohamed Tarrada brought the deficit down for the Bahrainis, but it was too late.
Furusawa top scored for victorious Japan with seven goals, while Chikaya Ishihara chipped in with six and Kaisei Akiyoshi had five.
Bahrain were paced by Sayed Ahmed Alfalahi, who had a game-high eight goals, while Abbas Ali contributed five and Alshowaikh had four. Sayed Majeed Almuhafda and Ali Aryah scored three goals apiece, while Mohamed Aadam and Jadeed netted two each. Abbas, Tarrada, and Qassim Sabt rounded out the Bahrainis’ scorers.
Bahrain, coached by Raed Almarzooq, are one of 32 youth men’s national teams taking part in the International Handball Federation (IHF) competition, which is scheduled to continue until August 17.
The Bahrainis will be hoping to bounce back in their second Group G fixture tonight against reigning African champions and hosts Egypt, scheduled for a 7.30pm throw-off, Bahrain time, at the same venue.
Their concluding fixture of the preliminary stage will be on Saturday against Asian powerhouses South Korea. That game is scheduled for a 5.15pm start, also Bahrain time.
There are eight groups in all in this preliminary phase. Group A features Sweden, Portugal, Kuwait, and Austria; Group B is composed of Hungary, Switzerland, Morocco, and Kosovo; Group C comprises Serbia, Spain, Croatia, and Algeria; Group D includes Iceland, Brazil, Guinea, and Saudi Arabia; Group E features Germany, Slovenia, Uruguay, and Faroe Islands; Group F is composed of Norway, France, Argentina, and Mexico; and Group H comprises Denmark, Tunisia, the Czech Republic, and the US.
The top two from each will move on to the worlds’ main round, while the pair of bottom-ranked sides will compete in the lower-tier President’s Cup, which will determine 17th to 32nd on the tournament’s final rankings.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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