BVSC and Savona earn comeback wins on day two of men’s Euro Cup

BVSC roared back from a half-time deficit to shock Panathinaikos with a sensational second-half display on day two of the men’s Euro Cup Group Stage. RN Savona also enjoyed a thrilling turnaround at home against VK Sabac Elixir, while other highlights included Szolnoki Dozsa Praktiker edging past Pallanuoto Trieste and Spandau 04 Berlin claiming all three points on the road at Steaua Bucharest.

2025/26 Euro Cup Men
Group Stage, Day 2
Thursday 30 October

Group A

ASC Duisburg (GER) 9-18 VK Jug AO (CRO)
CN Terrassa (ESP) 16-12 VK Solaris Sibenik (CRO)

Group B

CN Barcelona (ESP) 22-11 CS Dinamo Bucuresti (ROU)
Szolnoki Dozsa Praktiker (HUN) 16-14 Pallanuoto Trieste (ITA)

Group C

BVSC Manna ABC (HUN) 13-10 Panathinaikos AC (GRE)
PVK Buducnost Podgorica (MNE) 7-17 Vouliagmeni NC (GRE)

Group D

CSA Steaua Bucharest (ROU) 9-11 Spandau 04 Berlin (GER)
RN Savona (ITA) 17-12 VK Sabac Elixir (SRB)

Group A

ASC Duisburg (GER) 9-18 VK Jug AO (CRO)

An explosive 11-goal opening quarter set the tone for this lopsided encounter. Although the Germans went 1-0 up, it was the Croatians who were the stronger side, taking a 4-7 lead at the first break.

Jug maintained their attacking momentum in the second, and tightened their defence, while Duisburg continued to struggle. The hosts could manage only one more goal before half-time, while Jug pushed forward relentlessly, adding five to open up an unassailable 5-12 advantage.

Duisburg cut the deficit slightly in the third (8-14), but Jug just hit the accelerator again in the fourth, winning the final quarter 1-4 to finish nine goals clear.

Marko Zuvela hit five to lead the scoring for the visitors, while Maro Jokovic and Vlaho Pavlic weren’t far behind with four each.

CN Terrassa (ESP) 16-12 VK Solaris Sibenik (CRO)

VK Solaris Sibenik arrived in Spain looking for a second successive victory in the Euro Cup, but it wasn’t to be as CN Terrassa dominated the opening exchanges, showing their superiority, and opening up a 10-3 lead by half-time.

The Croatians left themselves with a huge mountain to climb and at 15-7 down entering the final quarter, the game was all but over.

Solaris may have won the last period 1-5 to make the scoreline appear more respectable, but the match belonged to Terrassa, who defended expertly, particularly in man-down (they finished the game with 21 fouls), and were much more clinical in the decisive moments.

Group B

CN Barcelona (ESP) 22-11 CS Dinamo Bucuresti (ROU)

After opening-day defeats in the Euro Cup, both teams entered this contest looking for their first points of the campaign, but it was CN Barcelona who hit the ground running and finished up worthy winners.

Dinamo captain Andrei Prioteasa led the resistance with six goals, but he was powerless to stop the Spanish onslaught by himself.

A 5-0 surge after 5-3 in the second quarter took the game away from the Romanians, as Barcelona built up a commanding 10-4 lead by the turnaround.

Dinamo struck twice in the third, but a 4-0 burst to start the quarter and a 3-0 finish cemented the hosts’ control at 17-6.

The outcome was way beyond doubt before a 5-5 final period, allowing Mart Van Der Weijden – who top-scored for Barcelona with five – and his team-mates to celebrate a fine victory.

Szolnoki Dozsa Praktiker (HUN) 16-14 Pallanuoto Trieste (ITA)

In Hungary, Trieste’s Vuk Draskovic was in exceptional form, scoring six goals against Szolnok – but even his individual brilliance couldn’t secure his team an away win.

Despite the Montenegro international’s heroics, Szolnok never trailed and kept Trieste at arm’s length throughout the game. It was an entertaining contest, with Trieste refusing to let the hosts pull away – the margin never exceeded two goals in the first three quarters.

At the final break, Szolnok led 10-9, setting up a thrilling last period that produced 11 goals. Bendeguz Kakstedter struck first from a six-on-five, and though Draskovic hit back with a penalty, Marton Zeman and Bence Szabo quickly restored control for Szolnok, opening a decisive three-goal cushion to help seal the win.

Even goalkeeper Otto Jozsa found the net, launching the ball into the empty Trieste net as the Italians, desperately searching for a way back, attempted a seven-on-six assault in the final minute.

Group C

BVSC Manna ABC (HUN) 13-10 Panathinaikos AC (GRE)

A magnificent and flawless 5-0 third quarter swung the game in BVSC’s favour, as the hosts roared back from a 4-8 half-time deficit to stun Panathinaikos.

The Budapest side exploded out of the long break like a runaway train – quite fittingly for a club named after the capital city’s railways – smashing in five unanswered goals to snatch a 9-8 lead heading into the final quarter.

The momentum was all BVSC’s as they added three more without reply in the fourth, completing a sensational 8-0 surge that left the Greeks stunned and trailing 12-8 with just 2:51 left to play.

Panathinaikos eventually replied through Aristeidis Chalyvopoulos, but it was too late, the damage was done, and Erik Csacsovszky’s third of the night sealed a remarkable comeback for the Hungarians.

PVK Buducnost Podgorica (MNE) 7-17 Vouliagmeni NC (GRE)

Vouliagmeni condemned PVK Buducnost Podgorica to their sixth consecutive defeat of the season, this time by an even wider margin than their 16-8 away loss to Panathinaikos on day one.

The outcome was clear early on, as the Greeks stormed to a 0-5 lead at the start of the second quarter. Buducnost did manage to narrow the gap to 5-7 midway through the third, but that only provoked Vouliagmeni into action again, with three quick goals putting the game back out of reach.

Dutch star Kas Te Riele was the standout performer for the visitors once again, netting five goals to add to the six he scored against BVSC two weeks ago.

Group D

CSA Steaua Bucharest (ROU) 9-11 Spandau 04 Berlin (GER)

CSA Steaua Bucharest’s miserable run against Spandau 04 Berlin continued with a fifth straight European defeat to the German side. Still, there was some progress – the 9-11 loss marked an improvement on their last meeting in February 2022, when Spandau cruised to a 16-5 Champions League win.

This time, a sluggish start proved somewhat decisive. Spandau finished the first quarter with a 0-4 surge to lead 2-5, which forced Steaua to chase the game from there.

The Romanians dug deep to pull level at 6-6 midway through the third, but their exertions appeared to catch up with them, as Spandau capitalised, netting three unanswered goals to help close out the match and secure all three crucial points.

RN Savona (ITA) 17-12 VK Sabac Elixir (SRB)

Savona built on their impressive day-one away win at Spandau Berlin with a stunning second-half comeback, overturning a 7-9 half-time deficit to beat VK Sabac Elixir 17-12.

After conceding nine goals in the first two quarters, the Italians tightened up defensively in the second half, limiting the Serbians to just three while ruthlessly firing in 10 themselves to claim all the points.

Tied 11-11 at the penultimate break, Savona had gained the upper hand as Sabac were struggling to regain their early rhythm.

A 3-0 surge put the Italians deservedly ahead in the fourth, and despite Nemanja Stanojevic pulling one back for 14-12, three more goals from summer signing Oliver Leinweber secured a second consecutive victory for Savona.

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Andy Rollé for European Aquatics

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