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Norway – Denmark 27-23 (10-13)
Norway lost by three goals at halftime against Denmark and then shook.
The break talk must have worked, because in the second half Norway came out and turned the game around. After 38 minutes of play, Norway took the lead.
– I say it like it is. I only ask the question if we are more afraid of losing than of winning, because it was a lot like that, Thorir Hergeirsson, director of the Norwegian national team, tells TV3.
TV 2 handball expert Bent Svele gives Hergeirsson a nine on the stock market for the way his control changed the game for Norway.
Hergeirsson believes Norway played with the handbrake before the break.
– So we knew we could do more and they probably woke up a bit and a bit provoked. Then we bring out the smile and the warriors, he says.
– I think it was a justified question, because we have been in a situation in which the fear of losing is greater than the desire to win and we have to try to turn it around, if it is possible to turn it around. And it is possible with the skills that are here, says the Icelander to TV3.
– Give a little F in the consequences
Hergeirsson believes it is important to talk about what is not working.
– We started to think about the consequences. It’s good to mention it, because I know nobody wants it. Everyone wants to win. The most important thing is to bring out the desire to win and give a small F in the consequences. It was constructive talk during the break, Hergeirsson says.
Players believe that the break chat was decisive for the result.
– We got a lot more peace, and at the same time we put our finger on some little things, especially forward, but also a bit backward. I felt we built a lot more confidence in ourselves and improved talking together, says captain Stine Bredal Oftedal.
– We were very happy with the defensive game, so we really wanted to continue with it, but get more speed. He lacked a bit in attack and I felt that we reached good opportunities, but we lacked the last percentages. We were more than good enough. We just had to show a little more, then we’d handle it, says Katrine Lunde.
– We were also pretty sure of that during the break. We had faith in him all the time, but as we started to move forward, to gain momentum in the fight, and to close down, we started to believe in it even more. The last minutes on the bench could not have been slower. It was an absolutely fantastic achievement in the second half, says Stine Skogrand.
Crucial switch
During the break, Katrine Lunde replaced Silje Solberg, who was inferior to Denmark’s star goalkeeper Sandra Toft in the first half. Hergeirsson believes that Kristiansander made several important stops in the last half hour.
– It was frustrating that we didn’t get to our fast break game, because that’s what we like. We are growing in that. When we don’t get it, we can be even more careful, Hergeirsson says.
The coach of the national team believes that it was to the credit of Denmark.
– Denmark did a very good job there. We were a bit careful. At first we had some free time upstairs, but we didn’t see them. Normally we would have played, but today we have held back. It was a bit with the parking brake on, he says.
Hergeirsson also made a change on the edge as Camilla Herrem struggled to hold back the Danes. Sanna Solberg Isaksen came in.
– When they led the edge transition, we fought on our left side. Sanna Solberg came in to take cover there, because she is taller and taller than Camilla Herrem. It was helpful, Hergeirsson says.
In Sunday’s final, France is Norway’s rival. Earlier in the day, Croatia and Denmark will meet in the bronze final.
