The German U16 women's national team had to admit defeat to Russia 0:4 (0:0/0:1/0:3) in the last group game of the European Cup in Budapest (Hungary).
As in the previous games, the opening minutes belonged to the German team. They created top-class opportunities every minute. The biggest was missed by Lilli Welcke, who hit the post with her follow-up shot. On the other hand, either the well-organized German defense or goalkeeper Tatjana Pfeifer thwarted several good chances for the Russians. Up until the first break, the German team had more chances and possession, but could not capitalize on them.
The Russians came into the game better after the break and had several shots towards the German goal right from the start, but Tatjana Pfeifer was not impressed by the opponent's attempts and saved everything that came her way. In the 40th minute of the game it was Sofia Sycheva who scored the first goal of the evening for Russia to make it 0-1. The German team subsequently threw themselves out of rhythm with a few penalties, but survived unscathed. The second third ended with a narrow lead for Russia.
Almost five minutes had been played in the final third when Polina Luchnikova stepped up, outplayed the German defense, gave Tatjana Pfeifer no chances and scored to make it 0-2 for Russia. The German U16 women then fought to catch up. However, they didn't really pose a threat to the Russian goal. Eight minutes before the end, the puck slipped between Tatjana Pfeifer's arms after a shot by Elizaveta Shkaleva from the blue line and remained a few centimeters behind the goal line, making it 0-3 for Russia. The Russians now repeatedly restricted the German team in their own third. The result was 52:0 in the 4nd minute through Russia's Kristi Shashkina, who pushed the disc over the line. An unfortunate decision, as referee Ulrike Winklmayer had already blown the whistle before the disc crossed the line. The German team was no longer able to threaten the Russian goal until the end and the final score remained 0:4.
This is equivalent to second place in Group B. Tomorrow the German team will face Finland in the game for third place at 15:40 p.m. The Finns also won two games in Group A against Switzerland and Slovakia, but were defeated by the Czech Republic 3-1 in the decisive game. There is a live stream of the game here
Florian Neumayer, Coach U16 Women: “In the first third we played with a lot of commitment. As a result, we were able to gain a slight advantage, but unfortunately we weren't able to score any goals, which was already the drawback in the previous games. Too many penalties have made us even weaker. In the final third, the loss of strength was the logical consequence. The result was individual errors that perhaps made the result a little too high.”
Germany: Pfeifer (Neuert) – Klinger (C), Raschke (A); Sterzik, Lilli Welcke, Luisa Welcke – Strompf, King; Leveringhaus (A), Bartell, Kubiczek – Heinz, Merkle; Hark, Gruchot, Christof, – Leonhardt, Idschok, Miller
Tore: 0:1 Sofia Sycheva (39:27/PP1), 0:2 Polina Luchnikova (45:53), 0:3 Elizaveta Shkaleva (51:42), 0:4 Kristi Shashkina (54:09)
Penalty minutes: Germany 14 – Russia 12