European Motoball Champions Cup: back in action!
Pictures copyright: Darius Zvinklys
After 4 years without any international competitions the Motoball Club of Kretinga, in Lithuania, welcomed more than 7.000 visitors for the first round of the European Motoball Champions Cup. Fast games, technical finesse and hard, but fair fights, and a lot of goals: this is exactly what the Motoball Commission was expecting from this new format.
Day 1
Troyes – Kuppenheim, 3 : 4
In the first match the French champion Suma Troyes met with the German champion Puma Kuppenheim. After a tight game the German team won with 3:4. Both teams were not able to arrive with the complete line up due to different reason, but it was Motoball on the highest level. There were passes, fast breaks, 7 goals and spectacular falls, without significant injuries. There was only a short moment of shock when Suma Troyes received a hard shot to the head, but after a 5-minute break from treatment, he was able to continue playing.
Kretinga – Troyes, 4 : 1
The game started with high speed and within short term the home team scored the first goal under the enthusiastic cheers of the spectators. In the following quarters Kretinga scored 2 more goals, before Suma Troyes could close the gap to 3:1. In the final quarter numerous goal chances were thwarted by both goalkeepers, so that only Kretinga could score one time more.
Day 2
Kretinga – Kuppenheim, 1 : 5
The Lithuanian team scored already after 5 minutes, but the German one fought back and scored 2 times within 1 minute. Kuppenheim first converted a penalty kick and scored directly after with a fast break. In the second and third period both teams had a lot of chances, but either the massive defence, the goalpost or the great goal keepers prevented further hits. In the last quarter Kretinga Team lost their coach and captain, which could not start due to a technical defect. The German champion took advantage of the opportunity and scored 3 times within a few minutes. The game was decided and Kuppenheim won with 1:5.
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