Nigeria’s women’s under-18 handball team endured a tough outing at the IHF Women’s Under-18 Handball World Championship in Chuzhou, China, suffering their second consecutive defeat with a 26-9 loss to Montenegro on Thursday.
This follows their earlier loss to Croatia, putting the team in a challenging position in the tournament.
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The match against Montenegro was a difficult one for the Nigerian team, who struggled to find their rhythm. Unlike their previous match, where they had numerous scoring opportunities but failed to capitalize, Nigeria’s shot ratio was significantly lower in this game, resulting in only six goals in the first half.
Montenegro, on the other hand, built a strong lead with 13 goals by halftime, largely due to their solid defensive performance.
The second half saw Nigeria’s struggles continue, managing to score only three goals while their European opponents added another 13 to secure a decisive 26-9 victory.
Despite the disappointing result, Coach Shittu Adewunmi Agboola expressed pride in his team’s effort and resilience, acknowledging that the results have not met their expectations but emphasizing the importance of learning and growth.
“I know these results aren’t what we expected while preparing for this competition, but I must say that I am proud of the girls for their resilience. We will now prepare for the next match and give it our all,” Coach Shittu stated.
Left Back Taiwo Babatunde, whose twin sister is the team’s goalkeeper, also reflected on the team’s inexperience but expressed gratitude for the opportunity to compete on the global stage. “We are trying to learn as much as we can here, to become even better,” Taiwo said.
Nigeria will face Angola in their final group match on Saturday at 3am WAT. Angola recently lost to Croatia 30-14. So far, Nigeria has scored just 20 goals across their first two matches, while Montenegro and Croatia have each conceded 25 goals in Group B.
