Teams stamp their names on round 3 spots
33 matches in the EHF European Cup Men round 2 were held from Friday to Sunday, with seven teams having already secured their progression to the next stage after the action.
Two Austrian sides, HC Fivers WAT Margareten and Förthof UHK Krems, are among them, as both won the double-headers played at home.
- Margareten lost to the Icelandic team KA on Friday, 30:29, but took a 30:26 revenge on the next day to win 59:56 on aggregate. In turn, Krems won both legs against Greek rivals A.E.S.H.Pylea on Saturday and Sunday, 68:55
- in the only national derby in round 2, Pölva Serviti eliminated fellow Estonian team Viljandi HC, 60:54 on aggregate
- BK-46 (FIN), HB Red Boys Differdange (LUX), RC Gracanica (BIH) and HC Vise BM (BEL) are also through after their victories in double-headers
- Swedish team Alingsås HK beat their Turkish opponents Beykoz BLD SK 32:28, with the second leg to be played on Monday 31 October
- six more double-headers as well as 18 second-leg games will be played next weekend, from 4 to 6 November
Nærbø and AEK claim home victories
Two most recent winners of the EHF European Cup Men played their first-leg matches at home, and both won – but they still cannot be sure of progression.
Reigning champions Nærbø IL started their title defence with a narrow 29:28 win against RK Slovenj Gradec, and the Norwegian team will face a hard time next Saturday in Slovenia. And the 2021 winners AEK Athens HK from Greece have a bigger cushion after a 25:20 home victory against Drenth Group Hurry-Up, yet the Dutch side will hope to hit back at home.
