Asian Men’s U-17 Handball Championship:
Iran runs riot against Bahrain, punches ticket for world meet
Iran hammered Bahrain 37-19 on Tuesday to progress to the final showpiece of the inaugural Asian Men’s U-17 Handball Championship in Amman, Jordan.
Standing between Iran and the trophy in today’s final at the Princess Sumaya Hall will be South Korea, which edged out Qatar 36-35 in the other last-four clash earlier on Tuesday.
Today’s game will be a repeat of the preliminary-round meeting between the two sides, which Iran won 31-25.
The semifinal victories saw Iran and South Korea secure a spot at the 1st IHF Men’s U-17 Handball World Championship – starting October 24 in Morocco.
Iran dominated the early proceedings against Bahrain, storming to a 7-1 lead with 11 minutes into the contest, while goalkeeper Mehrshad Mansouri delivered a heroic performance as Iran led by 10 goals at halftime.
Iranian boys picked up right where they left off after the break to seal their seventh successive victory in the competition.
Iran’s Mohammad-Taha Ebrahim Khanlari was awarded the Man of the Match prize after the game.
Iran began its campaign in Amman with a 65-4 hammering of Maldives, and then went on to defeat Syria (44-22) and South Korea to win Group D in the preliminary phase.
The first game in the main round saw Iran beat Asia’s traditional handball powerhouse Kuwait 35-30, followed by a 42-22 rout of the host team, and a commanding 46-25 win against Qatar on Sunday for a top-spot finish in Group 2.