Handball: tomorrow Erice, the leader of the A1 women's league, hosts Padova to extend their lead in the standings.

Stopped due to the commitments of the National Team are the two top men's handball leagues, with Serie A Gold seeing Albatro Siracusa led by Mateo Garralda in third place and in full contention for a spot in the Final Four for the championship, while in Serie A Silver, Haenna led by Mario Gulino is at the top alone, with Cus Palermo coached by Gianni Tornambé in 4th place having secured safety, and Girgenti under Lillo Gelo trying to avoid relegation.

TOMORROW ITALY IN HUNGARY

The men's Italy team flies to Hungary, where tomorrow in Tatabanya they will play an important friendly match to assess the work done by the team under head coach Bob Hanning, during the training camp that began on the 16th in Merano and will conclude with tomorrow's match in the Hungarian town located 60' from Budapest, in preparation for the double encounter with Switzerland on May 13 and 17, first in Zurich and then in Faenza, for the qualifications for the 2027 World Championships. An unprecedented blue team will take the field tomorrow in Hungary (live on TV from 14:30 on Sky Sport Arena) with many new faces compared to the team that played in the European Championships last January.

The left winger from Mascalucia, Gabriele Somma (Junior Fasano)

Five absolute debutants: the goalkeeper of Albatro Salah Riahi (class of 2004), the center Nicola Fadanelli (2002), the winger Alex Belardinelli (2009), the left winger from Mascalucia Gabriele Somma (2006) who plays this year in A Gold with Fasano, and the pivot Valentino Dello Vicario (2005), along with the return of the Tuscan winger Filippo Angiolini, a “star” of Albatro, in his first match with Italy under coach Bob Hanning.

The winger Filippo Angiolini and goalkeeper Salah Riahi (Albatro Siracusa) in blue

SERIE A1 WOMEN

Tomorrow, Handball Erice will play again in front of their home crowd at PalaCardella, hosting Padova at 4:30 PM in a match that will be officiated by the Sicilian refereeing duo, Marilisa Sardisco and Marina Micciulla, valid for the 20th matchday. The Handball Erice team, coached by Frederic Bougeant, is currently in sole first place, coming off a draw against Cassano Magnago achieved after an extraordinary comeback, with the opportunity to consolidate their lead in the standings with a victory, three matchdays before the end, in view of the playoff finals.

Coach Frederic Bougeant (Handball Erice)

“Against Padova - the words of Alessia Zizzo, winger for Handball Erice - we expect a tough match. We need to react after last week's game. We are training hard and getting more and more into the coach's style of play. The work we are doing needs to start showing consistently. Against Cassano, it wasn't one of our best performances. We didn't start the game well and even fell behind by 8 points. However, we had the strength to react, to return to playing our handball, and to get back into the game. In the end, we took one point, but there is regret for not being able to bring home two. On a personal level, after the injury, I am gradually returning. This is my first year in Erice, and I am finding it great. The sea is beautiful, the people are welcoming, and the club is fantastic.”

THE STANDINGS

Handball Erice 35 points, Salerno 32, Bressanone 30, Cassano Magnago 29, Teramo 20, Casalgrande Padana 17, Leno 17, Nuoro 14, Padova 13, Mestrino 10, Mezzocorona 6, Ferrara 5.

WOMEN'S A2 LEAGUE

Teams now focused on the second phase, and tomorrow for the penultimate matchday of the regular season, the undefeated leader Trapani will host (19:30; Sardisco and Micciulla) Halikada Gattopardo; the newcomer Top Five Acireale, after their first victory, will visit (18:30; Giarratana and Romeo) Mattroina, and Th Mascalucia will receive the visit (19:00; Napoli and Bonaccorso) of Marsala.

Handball Trapani leader in Serie A2 women

Top Five Acireale after their first victory against Marsala

THE STANDINGS

Trapani 16; Halikada Gattopardo 8; Th Mascalucia 8; Marsala 4; Top Five Acireale 2.

MEN'S SERIES B

The first defeat of the talents of Albatro Siracusa N.G., beaten in the last round by Th Mascalucia, has reopened the men's second division championship, with Regalbuto and Aretusa just two points behind the leader.

Th Mascalucia celebrates after the victory against the leader Albatro N.G.

Tomorrow, the Aretusa team has the chance to bounce back immediately by hosting (16:30; Giallongo and Manzella) Modica, who has just 4 points in the standings. An easy round also for the two pursuers, with Aretusa visiting the bottom team Alcamo tomorrow (18:30; Tumbarello and Scavone), while on Sunday Regalbuto will be hosted (16:30; Castagnino and Micciulla) by the other team from Albatro.

Tomorrow, the match Avola-Il Giovinetto Petrosino will also take place (16:30; Bocchieri and Scavone), and on Sunday, it will conclude with the Etna derby Nh Mascalucia-Th Mascalucia (18:00; Napoli and Bonaccorso) and Pgs Villaurea Palermo-Marsala (18:00; Sardisco and Campagna).

THE RANKING

Albatro Siracusa N.G. 24; Regalbuto 22; Aretusa 22; Marsala 20; Th Mascalucia 18; Albatro Siracusa Y. G. 14; Il Giovinetto Petrosino 12; Avola 12; Pgs Villaurea Palermo 10; Modica 4; New Handball Mascalucia 4; Alcamo 0.