Gros spares Brest’s blushes

BV Borussia 09 Dortmund were surprisingly leading for much of their away match with Brest Bretagne Handball, yet the German side could not claim a victory.

19 seconds from full-time, Ana Gros drew level at 33:33 and Dortmund were unable to score in their last attack, so the teams ultimately split the points.

Brest Bretagne Handball (FRA) vs BV Borussia 09 Dortmund (GER) 33:33 (17:20)

• in the current season, Brest have ended five games in a draw, more than any other team
• the French side remain third-placed with 17 points; they lost a chance for a top-two finish in the group as Györ are now through to the quarter-finals
• Dortmund, who are fighting for a playoff spot, earned an important point and are currently in sixth place with five points
• Dortmund’s Inger Smits finished the game with 11 goals, including eight in the first half
• Brest’s Ana Gros added seven goals to her tally and now has 89 in the tournament

Darleux does well in goal

Brest’s goalkeeper Sandra Toft made nine saves in the first half, yet her team were trailing by three goals at the break.

In the second half, Toft was replaced by Cleopatre Darleux, who did even better, recording ten saves for a 43 per cent save rate. In the dying seconds, Darleux denied Dortmund’s win by stopping a shot from Kelly Vollebrecht.