Silver medalist of the last edition of the world championship in Denmark, the Netherlands didn’t start the tournament well: France defeated them very confidently in the opening game of Group B.
The Dutch girls are participating in their first ever Olympics, maybe this is the reason why they started their Olympic campaign with a lot of easy mistakes. From the beginning on it was clear that we wouldn’t have as many goals as in the duel between Brazil and Norway. Even though Tess Wester made some really spectacular saves, the Dutch girls were simply not in their day: France lead 10-6 at halftime.
Tess Wester was the best Dutch today.| Photo: Bjørn Kenneth Muggerud
After the break, the Dutch girls started a bit better and they equalized at 12-12. However, after this result, in the last 15 minutes they didn’t have a momentum and netted only twice, while France got confidence and won the match 18-14 against the Netherlands. If Tess Wester wasn’t in the goal of the orange girls, France could have easily scored a +10 victory… Even missing three penalties didn’t matter for Olivier Krumbholz’s girls.
Rio 2016 – Women’s Handball Tournament – Group B, 1st round
France – Netherlands 18-14 (10-6)
France: A. Pineau 5(2), A. Lacrabére 5(5), S. Dembele 3, G. Niombla 2, L. Landre 1, C. Ayglon Saurina 1, M. Houette 1
Netherlands: C. Groot 3, L. Abbingh 3(2), L. van der Heijden 3(1), E. Polman 2, M. Smeets 1, A. Luciano 1, M. Goos 1
Suspensions: 6 mins – 10 mins
Penalties: 3/3 – 7/10
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