HC ALKALOID – HC PROLET 62 35-26 (14-10)

Venue: Avtokomanda in Skopje. Referees: Viktor Andonov and Stojanche Jovanovski. Controller: Leri Mirchevski

HC ALKALOID: Kizikj, Galevski, Djonov 3, Markoski, Mladenovikj, Serafimov 3, Karasmanakis 1, Stojkovikj, M. Mitev 1, Gjorgiev 4, Velkovski, Ivanovski 5, Petkovski 6, D. Mitev 11, Savrevski 1

Seven-meter throws: 9/9 Suspensions: 8 minutes

HC PROLET 62: Daskaloski, Petkovski, Fichorski 2, Jovevski 1, Gligorov 1, Vasilevski, Dodevski 1, Shilegov 2, Andonovski 3, Majnov 3, Drpljanin 1, Stojanoski 5, Stoilevski 3, Atanasovski 1, Palevski 3, Spasovski

Seven-meter throws: 4/5 Suspensions: 8 minutes

HC Alkaloid earned a dominant 35-26 victory over HC Prolet 62, securing their 18th win of the season. This result propelled them back to the top of the Super League standings ahead of the 20th round of matches.

HC Alkaloid played with a mixed lineup, giving more playing time to those players who typically don’t feature as much.

The team met the expected goal of securing a convincing win, with Damjan Mitev leading the charge with 11 goals. He was closely followed by Aleksandar Petkovski, who scored six goals, and Martin Ivanovski with five.

The match’s outcome highlighted HC Alkaloid’s stronger play as the first half drew to a close and their solid performance throughout the second half.

Although HC Prolet 62 was competitive in the first half and even held the lead at times, HC Alkaloid took control towards the end. After a 10-10 tie, Alkaloid surged with a 4-0 run, establishing a more commanding lead and shifting the momentum in their favor. In the second half, Alkaloid maintained a consistent lead of 5-7 goals and extended their advantage as the match progressed.

Before the league takes a break for international fixtures, HC Alkaloid will play one more match away against MHK Kumanovo, followed by the final round of this Super League stage with a home game against CHC Ohrid, and the EHF European Cup Quarter-finals against Romanian team Minaur Baia Mare.

After securing six victories in the ongoing European season, HC Alkaloid has earned a spot among the top eight teams in the EHF European Cup. Following the draw in Vienna, the team now knows the other seven emerging teams and its opponents for the upcoming quarterfinals.

In the quarterfinals, HC Alkaloid will face Romanian side Baia Mare. The winner of this two-leg tie will advance to the Semi-finals, where they will meet the victor of the match between Olympiacos of Greece and Runar Sandefjord from Norway.

The first leg of the quarterfinals is scheduled to take place in Romania on March 22/23, with the return leg in Skopje on March 29/30.

Should HC Alkaloid advance to the Semi-finals, they will face the winner of the Olympiacos vs. Runar Sandefjord clash on home ground on April 19/20, with the second leg set for April 26/27 at the away venue.

QUARTER-FINALS:

CS Minaur Baia Mare – HC Alkaloid
AEK – HC Partizan
Olympiacos SFP – Runar Sandefjord
Haukar – HC Izvidac

SEMI-FINALS:

CS Minaur Baia Mare – HC Alkaloid vs. Olympiacos SFP – Runar Sandefjord
AEK – HC Partizan vs. Haukar – HC Izvidac

HC EUROFARM PELISTER – HC ALKALOID 33-20 (16-11)

Venue: Boro Churlevski in Bitola. Referees: Gjorge Nachevski and Slave Nikolov. Controllers: Dragan Nachevski and Aco Nikolovski

HC EUROFARM PELISTER: Mitrevski 1, Ivic, Ristevski, Kuzmanoski 4, Tajnik 3, Borzash 1, Radivojevic 8, Kuzmanovski 11, Kosteski, Abutovic, Petar Atanasijevic, Peshevski, Hosni 3, Pavle Atanasijevic 1, Shebib 1

Seven-meter throws: 8/10 Suspensions: 8 minutes

HC ALKALOID: Kizikj, Galevski, Djonov 1, Markoski 2, Mladenovikj, Serafimov 8, Karasmanakis, Stojkovikj 2, Mitev 2, Gjorgiev, Velkovski 1, Ivanovski, Bingo, Francisco, Petkovski 1, Savrevski

Seven-meter throws: 4/5. Suspensions: 10 minutes

HC Alkaloid came away from the 19^th round Super League derby against HC Eurofarm Pelister in Bitola without any points.

The home side started strong, quickly taking a 5-1 lead in the first ten minutes, setting the tone for the match. HC Alkaloid gradually found their rhythm after a shaky start, reducing the deficit to three goals on several occasions (3-6, 9-12). However, missed opportunities prevented them from fully closing the gap. HC Eurofarm Pelister capitalized on these chances and went into the break with a 16-11 advantage.

In the second half, HC Alkaloid faced difficulties in the attacking phase, allowing the opposition’s goalkeeper to settle in, and the gap widened. Eurofarm Pelister, fuelled by the support of their enthusiastic fans, managed to control the pace and maintain a comfortable lead until the final whistle. With this loss, HC Alkaloid still has three games left in the current phase of the Super League. If no major shifts occur in the standings, they will carry two points into the playoffs, just like their rivals HC Vardar 1961, while HC Eurofarm Pelister will take three points into the next phase.

HC Alkaloid secured a second win over Italian side SSV Briksen (38-31) and booked their place in the quarter-finals of the EHF European Cup. Following the match, the standard post-game press conference was held, with the coaches and one player from each team speaking to the media.

KIRIL LAZAROV (HC Alkaloid, Head Coach): “I believe we rightfully passed this round of 16, playing with a fast and dynamic team. Perhaps the opponent didn’t have the depth in rotation, but the eight to nine players they used played quality handball, as we saw in the first half. Brixen lacked two to three players to be able to match us. We broke the game open in the 35th minute, turning the score in our favour. In the first half, we were reacting too quickly in certain situations and made mistakes—this is something we need to work on.”

MARKO STOJKOVIKJ (HC Alkaloid, Player): “We played a great match. We started well, and it was tight until the 35th minute. We played fast and maintained the pace. In the second half, we turned the score in our favour. There’s still plenty of room for improvement in order to take our game to the next level.”

RUDOLF NEUNER (SSV Brixen, Head Coach): “I would like to express my thanks for the hospitality here in Macedonia. Congratulations to Alkaloid, they are clearly a team of a higher calibre. We gave our best, and I wish them success in their future matches, both domestically and internationally.”

ANDREA BASIC (SSV Brixen, Player): “At 40 years old, playing a match like this in such an incredible atmosphere is a true honour. My respects to Kiril Lazarov and his HC Alkaloid team. We gave our all. This match wasn’t a must-win for us as we’re focusing on challenges ahead back home, but we’ve worked on refining aspects of our game here. Congratulations to our opponents once again on their victory.”

HC ALKALOID – SSV BRIXEN 38-31 (19-20)

Venue: Avtokomanda in Skopje. Referees: Ivars Cernavskis and Edmunds Bogdanovs from Latvia. EHF delegate: Delyan Genchev from Bulgaria

HC ALKALOID: Kizikj (9 saves +1), Galevski (7 saves), Djonov 1, Markoski, Serafimov 2, Karasmanakis 2, Stojkovikj 4, M. Mitev 7, Gjorgiev 2, Velkovski 1, Ivanovski 2, Bingo 5, Francisco 2, Petkovski 8, D. Mitev 1, Savrevski 1

Seven-meter throws: 1/1 Suspensions: 2 min

SSV BRIXEN: Lubinati, Voliuvach, Azzolin 1, Della Vecchia 3, Arcieri 4, Vinicius 12, Canete 4, E. Iballi 2, A. Iballi 1, Sader, Basic 3, Muhlogger, Socio, Oberhollenzer 1

Seven- meter throws: 2/3 Suspensions: 4 min.

HC Alkaloid is now among the top eight teams in the EHF European Cup after securing a solid win over the Italian side Brixen in the two-legged tie. Our team will be part of the draw for the quarter-finals of this prestigious European competition next Tuesday.

The match in Skopje unfolded at a slower pace than the previous encounter in Italy, but still featured plenty of goals. The defence struggled at times, allowing the attacking formations to dominate.

In the first 10 minutes, HC Alkaloid set the pace and dictated the score, but Brixen soon found their rhythm, equalizing and then taking the lead after 10 minutes of play (7-6). HC Alkaloid regained control, pushing ahead to a 14-11 lead, but Brixen responded with resilience, capitalizing on several mistakes to turn the tide and take a 20-17 lead in the 28th minute. HC Alkaloid ramped up their tempo before the break, attempting to close the gap, but they went into halftime trailing by one goal (20-19).

The second half saw a reinvigorated approach from HC Alkaloid, as they built a four-goal lead after 10 minutes (27-23), and by the 43rd minute, they were seven goals ahead (30-23). The remaining minutes saw HC Alkaloid maintain their advantage with a comfortable yet strong performance, playing fast and finishing with some strong goals.

HC Alkaloid will be part of the draw for the 1/4 finals of the EHF European Cup next week.

HC Alkaloid is gearing up for another European challenge in the EHF European Cup, where our team is on the brink of reaching the quarter-finals. The rematch with the Italian club HC Brixen follows a commanding 12-goal victory in the first leg in Italy.

In anticipation of the second clash, set to take place in Skopje, HC Alkaloid held a press conference, where coach Kiril Lazarov addressed the media. The coach confirmed that he will have all key players available, and the team’s ambitions remain high—to continue winning.

“For me, it was somewhat unexpected, especially at this time of the year, to secure such a convincing victory against a strong Italian opponent. We know that their handball, both at the national and club level, is on the rise, so this large goal difference was surprising. We played a solid match, everything went our way, but the result from Italy is not entirely realistic. We pulled away in the final minutes, it was only a four-goal advantage by the 50th minute. We won’t underestimate the opponent, even though I believe we are the better team. The players performed excellently, and now we have the return match in Skopje with the same opponent. I want and expect us to win, both for our ranking and for Macedonian handball. We’ve prepared well for this match and will be ready to face Brixen.

Experience tells me that we need to focus on each upcoming opponent, and now it is Brixen from Italy. Our schedule is tight, but we must take on this challenge. We know we have a match against Eurofarm Pelister coming up, but we have to give our best against everyone. We haven’t decided on the tactics yet, we’ll have to see how the match unfolds on Saturday. Our thoughts will be in Bitola, but we need to focus on finishing this task first. I don’t want any slip-ups that could harm our confidence.

We’ve had numerous discussions on this subject, especially given our strong advantage. Ideally, we’d like to face a less challenging opponent. While there are some lower-ranked teams in the draw, every team in the TOP-8 is of high quality and competes at an EHF European League level,” said Lazarov.

HC Alkaloid’s right-back, Martin Velkovski, also spoke to the press. Following a fantastic World Championship with Macedonia, Velkovski has fully committed to the club and continues to perform at a high level.

“We’re facing the Italian vice-champions again. The result in Italy was a big margin, but the game was much closer. They play modern, fast-paced handball, but we are the stronger team, and I believe we can secure another victory. I urge our fans to back us, and together, we’ll celebrate our qualification for the quarter-finals. The match in Italy was high-scoring due to the fast tempo. It’s hard to maintain a strong defence in a game with so many goals, but I think the match in Skopje will have a similar pace to the one in Italy, and we’ll see more goals again,” said Velkovski.

The upcoming match against Brixen will be HC Alkaloid’s sixth European fixture this season. In the EHF European Cup, besides the 44-32 victory in Italy, our club previously triumphed over West Vien from Austria (38-27 and 32-29) and Dragunas Klaipeda from Lithuania (42-31 and 37-31) with two victories in the two-legged ties.

The return leg between HC Alkaloid and SSV Brixen will take place on Saturday at 18:00 in the Avtokomanda Arena.