A month ago, the Danish women’s handball team finally managed to get the better of Norway, but on Sunday, the reigning World, European, and Olympic champions took their revenge at the Golden League tournament in Odense.
Norway held the lead throughout the match, winning 34–25. In particular, the world’s best female handball player, Henny Reistad, was in a class of her own, scoring 11 goals.
The Danish attack never really found its rhythm during Saturday’s defeat to Germany, and it also struggled significantly in the opening stages against Norway.
The Danes turned the ball over time and again, managing to score only three times in the first 13 minutes. Norway capitalized on this to pull ahead 9–3, prompting coach Helle Thomsen to call a timeout.
In the period that followed, Denmark found their footing—aided by saves from goalkeeper Anna Kristensen, who had been the team’s only bright spot against Germany.
The final minute, however, proved particularly costly. Julie Scaglione missed an attempt to narrow the gap to 13–16, and Norway responded by scoring twice to take an 18–12 lead into the break.
Team Esbjerg’s Henny Reistad, in particular, proved tough for the Danes to handle, scoring six goals in the first half-hour. She maintained that momentum at the start of the second half, extending the lead to 22–17 with her tenth goal seven minutes in.
At the other end, Helena Elver struggled significantly to find her rhythm, and, in general, Denmark’s key players only showed flashes of their true form.
Norway simply pulled away, leading by eight goals heading into the final 15 minutes, and ultimately secured a commanding nine-goal victory.
Consequently, there is plenty to work on before Denmark open their European Championship campaign against Spain on December 3rd.