Hungary win maiden M20 European title in overtime

• in contrast to the main round match between these two teams, when Sweden won 40:24, the Hungarians made Sweden work much harder in the battle for what would be the maiden title on both sides
• in their first-ever final at the Men's 20 EURO, Hungary ended a 32-year medal wait with gold. Back in 1998, at the second edition of the under-20 championship, they won bronze, beating Spain 29:24
• Sweden added a third silver to their trophy cabinet, after two previous final defeats in 2006 and 2014
• Swedish centre back Liam Hultberg was the team's top scorer with 52 goals; Hungary's centre back Márkó Eklemovic netted the most for his team — 45 times

FINAL 

Sweden vs Hungary 32:34 (16:15, 30:30)

Top scorers: Måns Fredriksson 9/13 (SWE), Péter Gazsó 14/18 (HUN)
Players of the Match: Måns Fredriksson (SWE), Péter Gazsó (HUN)

A lot was at stake when Sweden and Hungary took the court on Sunday afternoon in BT Arena in Cluj-Napoca. Sweden opened the gold medal match well, creating a three-goal lead 10 minutes into the game, but László Sótonyi called for a timeout. The break came in handy, as Hungary started coming closer to Sweden and equalised five minutes later, when Máté Gáncs-Pető stole the ball and went on to score for 7:7.

From that moment on, it was a level game. Hungary were flying high, not allowing Sweden to relax and create a gap which they would later have difficulties closing, even though the Swedish goalkeeping sensation Viggo Håkansson was saving crucial shots — this only meant the Swedes had to be more precise in attack.

The half-time score said 16:15 for Sweden, and as the game entered the last 30 minutes, drama continued. Some missed shots on both sides made it difficult for either team to make a significant change in the result. Around the 40th minute, Olle Söderqvist entered the game instead of Viggo Håkansson and immediately saved an attempt from Kopanny Pinter. Swedish centre back Liam Hultberg then hit the goalpost, and Söderqvist stopped two more attacks from the Hungarians. The scoreboard said 21:21, making every goal and every mistake count.

With less than three minutes until the final whistle, Måns Fredriksson scored for a two-goal lead for Sweden (28:26), but the Hungarians did not give up. Máté Fazekas equalised 30 seconds before the end of the second half, leaving the decision in the hands of the Swedish players, who failed to score and took the match to overtime. 

A thrilling final continued in overtime — 30:30 after the first five minutes gave the same starting point to both teams in the second overtime. With crucial saves by Ádám Kristóf Balogh, Hungary sealed the deal five minutes later for a 34:32 win. 

Main image: Simion Sebastian Tataru / FRH