Bahrain fought hard with grit and determination before losing to Egypt 27-31 in a placement match of the 24th International Handball Federation (IHF) Men’s Junior World Championship at Rentis Sport Hall in Athens.
Bahrain have already written history by progressing to the main round and securing their highest-ever position in the World Championship. And in the match against Egypt, they again showed quality and commitment.
While Egypt took early control of the match and led 12-7 in the 17th minute, Bahrain did not give up. Although Mohamed Rabia received a red card for a rough challenge on his opponent in the same 17th minute, Bahrain juniors stuck together, and their defence improved greatly. They made a strong comeback to pull in front at half-time (16-15).
The second half also saw a close fight, but Egypt went in front again and maintained a small advantage for most of the time. Their goalkeeper Youssef Salama ended the match with 15 saves and a 37 per cent saving efficiency, while Rady Ahmed, Mahmoud Shalby and Mohab Abdelhak led the way in attack, scoring six goals each.
But Bahrain fought hard, and with five minutes left, they cut the deficit to just one goal (27-28). However, Egypt scored three unanswered goals in the remaining time to register a victory.
Bahrain will end the competition with the placement match 13-16 against co-hosts Greece today.
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