Croatia is in the OI quarterfinals
Barracudas are in the 8 best teams of the Olympic tournament in Paris. In a game of nerves, a small "tactical "war" against a strong opponent in the pool, the chosen ones of coach Ivica Tuck left the pool of the Paris Aquatic Center with their hands raised high. Here, in this pool, they did their Olympic work.
In fact, with the victory over Greece, Croatia secured entry to the quarterfinals. From which exact place and against which opponent they will be looking to advance, these are questions to which we will get an answer no earlier than Monday, August 5, when the last day of the group competition is scheduled.
The match against the Greeks was expectedly equal, 'tough', against a rival who nurtures almost the same style of play as our national team.
After 3:3 in the first quarter, in the second part the rival managed to lead with two goals (5:3 and 6: 4).
In the third quarter, a slightly more aggressive, dynamic approach of the Croatian national team followed in the attacking aspect. This was reflected in the number of both shots and goals. As many as 7 in this section alone. The quarter was brilliantly opened by Jerko Marinić Kragić with two consecutive goals to equalize at 6:6, and towards the end of this part of the game, with goals from Bukić and again Marinić Kragić, the Barakudas now took the lead with two goals or 11:9.
At the beginning of the last quarter, in swimming for the ball or the first attack, the referees saw and awarded the so-called brutality to our player, Matias Biljak. Exclusion without the right to substitute, so 4 minutes with one less player and five points for the Greek. A very thankless situation. After four minutes, Greece managed to equalize (12:12), but Kharkiv, with two great shots from the right wing, again gave our team a two-goal advantage (14:12). One minute and 14 seconds before the end, the Greeks scored a goal through Vlachopoulos for 14:13, which turned out to be the last act of this little water polo drama in Paris.
STATEMENTS
Jure Marelja, assistant selector:
- Entering the match very well, controlling the game, only to have a drop towards the end of the second quarter, but after that a very, very good third quarter. At the beginning of the last quarter, that situation happened, the contact of Biljaka with the exclusion without the right of substitution. As much as it surprised us, shocked us at first, that same decision gave us an energy "disruption". We were really in a trance. I think that even Greece was a little taken aback by our energy explosion, and we secured victory on the wave of that. As for the exclusion of Biljaka, I will just say that it was swimming for the ball, no intention. I had the honor of working with that guy for a year and I know for sure that there was no intention on his part to hit anyone. I'm sorry, but on the other hand, I'm glad because that decision gave us energy, our positive madness that led us to victory.
Konstantin Harkov:
- Very demanding match, very important 3 points and let's move on. To the quarterfinals! That is the most important thing. Yes, in the second half we increased our aggressiveness in attack. We missed that a bit in the first part.
Maro Joković:
- The first goal has been achieved. We made it to the quarterfinals, but what I would definitely emphasize is the incredible energy and fighting spirit that we finally showed in this match. We had really difficult moments. The brutality of Biljaka was destined, we had fewer players in total and I don't know how long, we stopped counting that. The defense "pulled out" this game, sacrificially and as expected from us in this tournament. One very good wind at the back for the match with the Americans and for the future, in general.
Luka Lončar:
- First of all, I want to congratulate and praise every teammate, all members of the staff, because we played a great game. There were mistakes, but I think we played a great game, we worked hard and showed a winning mentality. Regardless of everything that befell us, we pulled through, because we believed in ourselves and in victory.
Toni Popadić:
- Congratulations to the boys and everyone. We knew it would be difficult, although we didn't really expect it to be this difficult, but good. Not even luck helped us, and then that awkward blow, that is, the destined brutality of Biljaka. We managed to overcome all that. Our character and courage, energy came to light again. I even think she won in the end. He woke up a little spite in us when we were left without a player for 4 full minutes. And then our 2-3 defenses that filled us with confidence, and the opponent with a little nervousness. Maybe it's a stupid thing to say, but in the end, that exclusion came in handy. Each of us gave our hearts in the pool and deservedly won three points.
