HC Alkaloid is gearing up for its second EHF European League match, marking the club’s first official away match in the competition.

This Tuesday (October 24, 2023), HC Alkaloid is set to face off against Logroño La Rioja, a club representing Spain in the EHF European League. The match will take place at the Logroño Sports Hall, with a seating capacity of approximately 4000 spectators, commencing at 8:45 PM. In Macedonia, the match can be viewed on the MTV 3 and Arena Sport TV channels.

The first away fixture in the EHF European League poses a considerable challenge for both our club and our players. We are set to compete on the home turf of an esteemed handball team that marked its 20th anniversary this year.

Logroño La Rioja has been a prominent contender in the premier Spanish league – ASOBAL since 2006. Their remarkable achievements include clinching the runner-up position in ASOBAL three times and securing two third-place finishes. Additionally, they have taken part in the Champions League on four occasions and featured in the second-tier European Cup seven times.

This club’s jersey has been donned over the years by renowned Spanish handball players and international stars, including Alex Dujshebaev, Rubén Garabaya, Juanín García, Rafael Capote…

The strong reputation of our upcoming opponent serves as an additional motivator for our players to deliver their utmost performance on the field, aiming to secure our first European points. Representing Macedonian handball on the international stage is a responsibility we take seriously, and our club is committed to continuous improvement in all aspects of the game.

On Monday, HC Alkaloid will travel to Spain and is scheduled to hold a training session at the Logroño hall later that evening.

HC Alkaloid faced HC Vojvodina in their EHF European League debut, a team with numerous Serbian championships under their belt and the reigning EHF Cup champions. The visiting team outperformed their opponents, securing a 31-26 victory. They effectively leveraged their greater experience and capitalized on our team’s struggles in executing clean opportunities. This triumph marked their first points in the competition.

Following the match, a press conference was held, where our team’s coach, Kiril Lazarov, shared his thoughts.

“We have a few days to analyze the match, and I am optimistic that we will perform better in our upcoming game. I believe our issues were not primarily on the defensive side, but rather in our offensive plays. There were some positive aspects to our performance, we created many goal-scoring opportunities. However, our inability to capitalize on those chances led to us conceding goals. Such situations are not uncommon in our domestic league, but at this level, we can’t afford so many missed opportunities. This is something we need to work on. While I am pleased that we had our moments, our execution was lacking,” stated Lazarov.

For the second round of the EHF European League, HC Alkaloid will venture abroad for their first international match, making their debut in Spain. Their opponent will be La Rioja Logroño. The match is scheduled for Tuesday (24.10.2023) starting at 08:45 PM.

ALKALOID – VOJVODINA 26-31 (13-15)

Venue: Jane Sandanski in Skopje. Referees: Denis Bolic and Christoph Hurich from Austria. Delegate: Predrag Pavicevic from Montenegro

ALKALOID: Romero, Djonov 8, Markoski 1, Mladenovikj, Serafimov 4, Stojchevikj, Stojkovic, Mitev 5, Gjorgiev 1, Velkovski 1, Omeragikj, Trajkoski, Bingo 5, Kofiloski, Petkovski, Savrevski 1

Seven-meter throws: 4/9 Suspensions: 6 min.

VOJVODINA: Lucin, Sijan, Vorkapic 8, Milic 6, Ocvirk 2, Vukovljak, Aziz 3, Trnavac, Milenkovic 3, Sunajko, Pušica, Radjenovic 1, Pesic 2, Rogan, Pukhouski 6, Chouiref

Seven-meter throws: 5/6 Suspensions: 12 min.

Our team had a competitive start against the opponent and performed strongly in the initial ten minutes. Vojvodina gained an advantage, extending from 5:7 to 5:10, but thanks to Djonov and Bingo’s outstanding performance, Alkaloid managed to reduce the deficit to just minus two before halftime (13:15).

However, the lack of experience at crucial moments in the second half became decisive, as Alkaloid was trailing by two goals and technical errors emerged in their offensive plays, which the experienced team of Vojvodina exploited. Additionally, Alkaloid encountered difficulties with their penalty shots, missing five during the match.

Ivan Djonov was our team’s best scorer netting eight goals, followed by Marko Mitev and Arnaud Bingo, who each contributed five goals, while Martin Serafimov scored four times.

See the media guide for the match between HC Alkaloid and HC Vojvodina in the first round of the EHF European League, by clicking on the following link:

MEDIA GUIDE: HC ALKALOID – HC VOJVODINA

The duel will take place on Tuesday (17.10.2023) in SC Jane Sandanski in Skopje, starting at 08:45 PM.

You can buy tickets for our first European match via the MKTickets sales network at the following link:

РК АЛКАЛОИД – РК ВОЈВОДИНА

HC Alkaloid is gearing up for its first European challenge, marking a significant milestone in the club’s history. Thanks to their second-place finish in the Macedonian Super League last season, the club won the right to represent Macedonian club handball directly in the group stage of the EHF European League, the second most prestigious competition in Europe, standing just below the Champions League.

The group stage matches in the EHF European League kick off tomorrow (17.10.2023). HC Alkaloid is grouped with HC Bjerringbro Silkeborg from Denmark, Logroño La Rioja from Spain and their first visitor in Skopje, HC Vojvodina, a team that has won several Serbian championships.

HC Alkaloid hosted a press conference today, where coach Kiril Lazarov and captain Igor Gjorgiev spoke before a substantial number of media representatives from Macedonia and Serbia about the significance of their participation in the EHF European League, the club’s ambitions and their expectations from tomorrow’s match.

“This match marks a historic moment for our club. In our second year of existence, we achieved a remarkable feat last year by securing a place in the EHF European League. It is the second highest regarded competition in Europe, right after the Champions League. This holds significant value for us, particularly because last year our team comprised solely Macedonian players.

We will strive for competitiveness in this tournament that is side by side with the Champions League playing against teams with extensive elite-level experience. This is a big challenge, especially for our young Macedonian players. I am optimistic that we will present ourselves in a manner that befits the occasion”, said coach Kiril Lazarov.

“Our first opponent is Vojvodina, winner of the EHF Cup, the third EHF European competition of the previous season. To win in any European cup, a team must demonstrate exceptional quality. This year, Vojvodina introduced two Tunisian players, they also have Vorkapic, who is one of their best players, there is also Sunajko, a Hungarian international and national team player, alongside the Belarusian national team player Pukhouski, the Slovenian Ocvirk… These names alone speak volumes about the opponent we are about to face.

The Macedonian public can look forward to these upcoming matches, while as a club, we will try to live up to their expectations by giving our utmost effort. I anticipate a high-quality game and hope our players rise to the occasion. We hold Vojvodina in the highest regard, but if we perform at our best, we might have a chance to pull off an upset,” Lazarov expressed.

In his message to the public, team captain Igor Gjorgiev, said:

“We are a young team, and after achieving last year’s success of becoming Macedonian vice-champions, we now face a significant new challenge, the EHF European League. Our first opponent is HC Vojvodina, the reigning Serbian champions, featuring a team of highly skilled players.”

As the team’s captain, I can confidently state that we are well-prepared, and the players are highly motivated and eager to demonstrate their abilities.

These matches will be a great experience for our team. I would like to convey a message to the Macedonian public and the spectators to come and support us.” expressed Gjorgjiev.

The match will take place at the Jane Sandanski arena, commencing at 8:45 PM. Tickets for the match can be purchased through the MKTickets sales network:

РК АЛКАЛОИД – РК ВОЈВОДИНА – MKTickets : MKTickets

HC MULTI ESSENCE – HC VARDAR NEGOTINO 30-27 (15-14)

Venue: Avtokomanda in Skopje. Referees: Dimitar Mitrevski and Blagojche Todorovski. Delegate: Ilija Cvetkovski

HC MULTI ESSENCE: Ermanoski, Dimevski 2, Kostovski 4, Ilieski 9, Petkovski, D. Uzunchev, Petreski, Trajchev, Omeragikj 2, Vasilevski, Todeski 3, T. Uzunchev, Dimovski 5, Trajkovski, Jordanov 2, Karasmanakis 3

Seven-meter throws: 3/3 Suspensions: 6 min.

HC VARDAR NEGOTINO: Kuev, Kuzmanov 3, Keric 3, Oreshkov 3, Mitevski 2, Micev 2, Gjorgjev 2, Petrov 1, Adamovic 6, Icev, Mihajlovikj 3, Peovski 2, Jovanovski, Minic

Seven-meter throws: 2/2 Suspensions: 8 min.

The team of HC Multi Essence scored their second Super League victory today. Our young handball players outperformed the team of HC Vardar Negotino (30-27), bringing their total points to six.

The score was even throughout the first half of the game. HC Multi Essence took the lead with 2-1, after which the visiting team had a minimal advantage or there was a draw (5-5, 6-6). Then the teams exchanged the lead multiple times, with our team maintaining a narrow advantage at halftime (15-14).

HC Multi Essence was the better opponent in the second half and quickly gained a bigger advantage (19-16, 20-17), with the key period being the second part of the half when we went from a 24-22 lead to 27-22. Those five goals were enough for us to win the match with a score of 30-27.

Bozidar Ilieski having scored nine goals was leader of the game and the team’s best scorer, followed by Martin Dimovski with five and Mihajlo Kostovski with four goals scored.