RK Partizan - Sloga 28:27 (superliga, round 8)

This game was back on Saturday. Today is Tuesday. I’ve been waiting until now to find some - any - material about this game, photos, anything.
LOL.
Even the government would resign earlier than any material about handball games will be released...
The most important is that we won. We had a confident advantage in the first half (6:3, 10:6, 13:9 and so on), then the second half was a bit more close, though we kept the lead for the whole time, just now our advantage was only 1-2 goals.
The hero of the day is Nikola Perović with 6 goals. He is followed by Lazar Kukić and Igor Mršulja scoring 5-5 goals. Stefan Jokić and Vuk Milenković earned 3-3 scores, Nemanja Živković, Darko Stevanović and Nikola Ivanović all scored 2-2 goals.

Current championship standings:
1. CZ 13 points
2. Vojvodina 13 points
3. Dinamo 12 points
4. Sloga 10 points
5. Spartak Vojput 9 points
6. Šamot 65 9 points
7. Požarevac 7 points
8. Partizan 7 points
9. Metaloplastika 6 points
10. Rudar 6 points
11. Morava 4 points
12. Jugović 0 point

RK Sloga - RK Partizan 27:26 (play-off, round 9)

This game could be one big struggle.
Perhaps Sloga deliberately focused hard on this game to knock us out, or maybe we were by default out of shape

this latter is more likely, as 3 Partizan-players were absent for being injured: Sretenović, Pešić and Đuričić - wishing them all to get well soon!

nevertheless Team Požega stomped us into the court. Looking at the official match report our luck is that we were defeated only with 1 goal. What is more, in fact we could come up for the end that we could have squeezed out a draw with some luck.
The first half was about Sloga. They were leading for almost the whole half, sometimes with 4-5 goals. We could equalize 5 minutes before half-time (12:12), then we took the lead twice for a short lapse of time, first with Kukić’s goal (12:13), then with Radojković’s (13:14). The home team equalized and soon before the half-time buzz they took back the lead (15:14).
The second half wasn’t much happier either. It was a bit closer though, but Sloga was still leading, now with just 1-2 goals. We could equalize several times. In the 53rd minute the standing was 26:26, we equalized with Radojković’s goal. Then in the 56th minute Sloga scored their winning goal. There were no more goals for the rest few minutes, though looking at the official report (and the number of suspensions) there could be a great fight.
The hero of the day is without a doubt Lazar Kukić with his 9 (!!!) goals and superhuman performance. He is followed by Igor Mršulja, who scored 5 goals. Then come Mihajlo Radojković and Matija Pižurica (4-4 goals), Nemanja Živković (2) as well as Mijat Perunčić and Ivan Popović (1-1).
The next round will be the last round, we’ll play against Metaloplastika. I just got to know that RK Partizan qualified to the Final Four of the handball Serbian Cup. Our opponent will be Metaloplastika, at the other side Spartak Vojput and Vojvodina will clash. The Final Four series will be held in the Šabac Sports Hall between 2nd and 3rd June.

(photos: Facebook/Restoran stadiona Partizan)

Current standing of the play-off:
1. Vojvodina 15 points
2. Metaloplastika 15 points
3. Partizan 10 points
4. Spartak Vojput 7 points
5. Sloga 5 points
6. CZ 2 points

RK Partizan - Sloga 27:24 (play-off, round 4)

We can say that we brought the obligatory victory, but it was far not that an easy torch-lit march as it might look at first sight. The Požega-based team strangled us by the throat, and for a while it looked that they might even win the match.
The beginning was great. We had a confident lead (4:2, 7th minute), then in the 13th minute Sloga equalized (6:6). In the next minute they even took the lead (6:7). Then they sped up and jumped to 6:9 and we could approach them only in the 21st minute (8:9). But even then they did keep their end up. They fought hard, while we missed out a number of chances. Even in the 24th minute the standing was 9:11, then we equalized somehow 5 minutes before the end (11:11). Then we took back the lead with Radojković’s goal (12:11), but Sloga was right behind us. We ended the first half with 13:12.
The second half had a bitter start. Sloga equalized (13:13), they immediately took back the lead (13:14), then for quite a while it was like we equalized, Sloga immediately threw another goal. 14:15, 15:15, 15:16, this little piggy went to the market, this little piggy stayed at home... it was going like this until the 39th minute, when we equalized with Živković’s goal (19:19), then Maksić took back the lead (20:19). It didn’t get any easier though. Now it looked like this, Sloga equalized and we immediately threw another goal. 21:20, 21:21, 22:21... this little piggy had roast beef, this little piggy had none... right until the 52th minute, when Sloga equalized (22:22), then Živković scored (23:22), then for surprise Kukić also scored (24:22). What is more, even Pešić had his moment (25:22). Sloga kept on trying, but they had only one goal left to score. One minute before the end the Captain earned one more goal, setting the end result with his score (27:24).
The hero of the day is Aleksa Maksić with 9 goals. He is followed by Nemanja Živković (6), Mihajlo Radojković (4), Lazar Kukić and Igor Mršulja (3-3) as well as Ivan Popović and Živan Pešić (1-1).
There aren’t many photos, there is only this one from the team’s Facebook page, I also made two screenshots.
If there are any more photos available, I’ll update the post.

(photo: Facebook/Rukometni klub Partizan)

Time-out in the first half, when Sloga started to push hard

End of the match

League table will be brought tomorrow, but RK Partizan looks to be very confident on the 2nd place.
Update: current standing of the play-off
1. Metaloplastika 8 points
2. Partizan 6 points
3. Vojvodina 5 points
4. Spartak Vojput 3 points
5. CZ 2 points
6. Sloga 0 point

Sloga - RK Partizan 28:19 (superliga, round 13)

Before starting this match report you click and watch this heartfelt video with captain Mršulja, then you run head over heels to help the handball team.

The handball team is in a very big trouble. For a while it was questionable even if they can start the spring season of the championship. The reason, as always when it’s about Partizan, is the financial state of the team. For this reason Srđan Cekić, RK Partizan’s president resigned two weeks ago. He said, "The club has been on the verge of existence for 3 years now. In this situation I cannot guarantee even the minimal conditions for the team’s basic functioning. It was my moral duty to resign."

After this it’s no wonder at all that we were defeated with almost 10 goals at the season opening match.
It started well though. In the beginning we were leading, always with one or two goals, with Sloga constantly equalizing, but Mršulja, Živković, Pižurica, Sretenović and Kukić joined their forces. We hung in there until the 21st minute, when Sloga took the lead (8:7) and from then on they didn’t let control out of their hands for the rest of the game.
Here, at the end of the first half we could still equalize a couple of times (8:8, 10:10), but the half-time result was already 14:10.
For the second half Sloga overgrew us. They ran away, sometimes to the difference of 7 goals (19:12, 20:13), what is more, in the 48th minute their advantage was 23:15. We fought hard and brave, we scored goals (25:18, 55th minute), but the strain from the home side was too much.
The hero of the day was Igor Mršulja with 6 goals. He is followed by Nemanja Živković (5), Stevan Sretenović (3), Lazar Kukić (2) as well as Matija Pižurica, Mijat Perunčić and Aleksa Maksić (1-1).

 (photos: srls.rs)

League table will be brought later.

Update: current championship standings
1. CZ 23 points
2. Sloga 20 points
3. Metaloplastika 18 points
4. Partizan 16 points
5. Požarevac 16 points
6. Jugović 12 points
7. Morava 11 points
8. Rudar 9 points
9. Radnički 4 points
10. Železničar 1 point

RK Partizan - Sloga 28:24 (superliga, round 4)

While half the world was watching with bated breath as the Serbian football team beat the hell out of Albania, Partizan's handball team had an easy victory against Sloga in the 4th round of superliga.
We had an excellent start (3:1), Sloga equalized after more than 10 minutes (3:3). We took back the lead (5:3), the guests equalized in the 20th minute (6:6). From this point on there was no stop, we were leading continuously, in the 21st minute our advantage was 2 goals (8:6), then 10:7, 11:8 and so on. 3 minutes before half time the standing was 12:9, a minute later we scored another (13:9), Sloga shot one before the end of the half. We finished the first part with 13:10.
In the second half we continued to march. The guests had no chance at all. We were leading with 2-3-4 goals for the whole time. 15:11 (33rd minute), 16:13 (36th minute), 20:16 (43rd minute). We kept on scoring, 2 minutes before the end we were leading to 28:23. Sloga scored one last goal before the end buzz (28:24).
The hero of the day was Captain Igor Mršulja with 8 goals. He is followed by Stevan Sretenović (5) and Lazar Kukić (4). Nemanja Živković, Mihajlo Radojković and Ivan Popović all scored 3-3 goals, while Andrija Đuričić added 2 to our victory.

Ivan Popović - Ivan the Terrible, with his ultimate beard

Stevan Sretenović

Our goalkeeper Tomić’s great moment

You can’t just stop Radojković. For that even a wrecking ball wouldn’t be enough, not mentioning a simple defender

I told you...

Igor Mršulja defends the ball with his body, if needed

Aleksa Maksić’s attempt

Stevan "Parni Valjak" Sretenović

If the Captain speeds up...

Lazar Kukić runs up and scores

3 defenders are trying to block Mršulja...

...but he shoots anyway

(photos: srls.rs)

I’ll bring you league table at weekend.

Update: current championship standings:
1. CZ 7 points
2. Partizan 6 points
3. Sloga 5 points
4. Požarevac 5 points
5. Metaloplastika 5 points
6. Rudar Kostolac 4 points
7. Morava 3 points
8. Jugović 3 points
9. Radnički 1 point
10. Železničar 1 point