...Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt and Tunsia in the semi final
By Mishael Emmanuel and Trust Ittai
Nigeria’s hopes of securing a podium finish at the Handball African Nations Cup in Kigali, Rwanda, were shattered at the quarter-final stage after two heavy defeats.
The Golden Arrows, as the Nigerian team is affectionately known, faced Egypt in their second quarter-final matchup after a narrow loss to Angola earlier in the competition.
Unfortunately, the Nigerian team’s struggle continued, with Egypt cruising to a dominant 48-22 victory. This result sealed Nigeria’s fate, extinguishing any remaining hope of reaching the semi-finals.
Earlier in the tournament, the Golden Arrows had lost a tight contest to Angola, 27-24, in their first quarter-final match.
Despite a spirited performance, they were unable to break Angola’s defense and failed to capitalize on key moments.
That defeat already put Nigeria on the back foot, but their performance against Egypt showed that the road to the podium was just out of reach.
In the other Group 1 quarter-final, Angola, who had stunned Nigeria, were themselves defeated by Algeria, 28-22.
With that result, Algeria advanced to the semi-finals alongside Egypt, the defending champions, who had easily dispatched Nigeria.
Meanwhile, in Group 2, Tunisia dominated Cape Verde 37-25, while Morocco eased past Guinea with a 38-26 win. Tunisia and Cape Verde secured their places in the last four, continuing their quest for the title.
With the quarter-finals now complete, the stage is set for the semi-finals. Egypt will face Cape Verde, while Tunisia will take on Algeria in what promises to be an exciting clash of handball giants.
For the eliminated teams, the battle for classification continues. Nigeria, after their crushing defeats, will now face Guinea in a 5th-8th place classification match.
Morocco and Angola will also meet in the same category, while Cameroon and Rwanda are set to face off in the 9th-12th classification match.
The upcoming matches will determine the final positions for the teams, as all eyes turn to the semi-finals, where the competition promises to intensify.
QUARTER-FINAL RESULTS:
• Egypt 48 - Nigeria 22
• Angola 27 - Algeria 22
• Tunisia 37 - Cape Verde 25
• Morocco 38 - Guinea 26
SEMI-FINAL LINEUP
• Egypt vs Cape Verde
• Tunisia vs Algeria
CLASSIFICATION MATCHES:
CLASSIFICATION 5-8
• Morocco vs Angola
• Nigeria vs Guinea
CLASSIFICATION 9-12
• Cameroon vs Congo
• Rwanda vs Gabon
CLASSIFICATION 13-16
• Zambia vs Uganda
• Kenya vs Benin
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