2017 Swedish Men's Handball Championship final

The 2017 Swedish Men's Handball Championship final (Swedish: SM-finalen i handboll för herrar 2017) was a handball match that took place at Malmö Arena in Malmö on 27 May 2017 to decide the winner of the 2016–17 Handbollsligan. The match was contested by IFK Kristianstad and Alingsås HK. Kristianstad won the match by 31–25 to win their third consecutive Swedish title.

2017 Swedish Men's Handball Championship final
Event2016–17 Handbollsligan
IFK Kristianstad Alingsås HK
31 25
Date27 May 2017
VenueMalmö Arena, Malmö
Attendance9,876

Background

Kristianstad entered the match as two-time defending champions, having won the titles in 2015 and 2016.[1] Kristianstad had won the regular season, whereas Alingsås had finished fifth.[2] Both regular season matches between the teams had finished with home wins, with Alingsås winning by 30–24 and Kristianstad by 25–16.[3] The teams had previously faced each other in the quarter-finals in 2012 and 2013 and in the final in 2015 and 2016, with Kristianstad winning each time.[4][5][6][1] It was the fifth time that Malmö Arena hosted the final, following 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016.[7]

Road to the final

Kristianstad defeated Eskilstuna Guif by 3–0 in the quarter-final series and Ystads IF by 3–1 in the semi-finals. Alingsås won both the quarter-finals against HK Malmö and the semi-finals against IK Sävehof by 3–1.[8][9]

Match

Summary

Kristianstad started the match strongly and led by 4–0 after nine minutes.[10] The teams followed each other to 8–4,[11] but Kristianstad extended the lead to 16–7 and led by 18–11 at half-time.[12] Alingsås played better at the start of the second half and reduced the deficit to 22–19.[13] However, after that they went eight minutes without a goal[13] and Kristianstad extended the lead to 26-20.[10] Kristianstad held on to the lead and won by 31–25.[10] Kristianstad's Jerry Tollbring was the top scorer of the match at 10 goals. Andreas Flodman scored the most goals for Alingsås, 9.[14]

Details
27 May 2017 IFK Kristianstad 31–25 Alingsås HK Malmö Arena, Malmö
Attendance: 9,876
Tollbring 10 (18–11) Flodman 9

Reactions

Kristianstad player Albin Lagergren praised teammate Jerry Tollbring, saying that "we just had to give the ball to Jerry and it was a goal, he did whatever he wanted to."[15] According to Kristianstad captain Ólafur Guðmundsson his team's strong start to the match was decisive.[12] Kristianstad goalkeeper Nebojša Simić praised his team's fans after the match saying that "they are like wings on your back".[10] Alingsås coach Mikael Franzén said after the match: "the uphill slope is too steep from the start against such a good team as Kristianstad. I can't say anymore than that it is fair, they push us down and don't give us the chance." He highlighted his team's inability to best Simić as a reason for the loss, saying "[Simić] is good today, but not impossible. He makes some saves that are important, but naturally if we had got the better of him earlier you never know."[16] Alingsås player Max Darj said "we did a lot of things that we certainly shouldn't do. (...) We have been here before, we should have learned our lesson".[17]

References
  1. "Kristianstads kross i SM-finalen". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  2. "Handboll 2016/2017 Handbollsigan". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  3. "Matchdata. Säsong : 2015–16. Liga: Handbollsligan". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  4. "IFK till semifinal". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  5. "Anton Lindskog tog Kristianstad till semi". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  6. "Alingsås föll tungt i finalen". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  7. "SM-finalerna 2017 spelas i Malmö". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  8. "Handboll 2016/2017 Handbollsigan kvartsfinal". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  9. "Handboll 2016/2017 Handbollsigan semifinal". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  10. "Tredje raka guldet för Kristianstad". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  11. "Patric Nilsson: Kristianstad är handbollens huvudstad". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  12. "Olafur Gudmundsson: Jag är stolt över laget". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  13. "Blytung tredje finalförlust". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  14. "IFK Kristianstad tog sitt tredje raka SM-guld". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  15. "Lagergren: Han är helt underbar". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  16. "Franzén: "De ger oss inte chansen"". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  17. "Alingsås självkritik: "Borde ha lärt oss"". Retrieved 9 June 2018.
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