Bahrain eye bronze against Qatar

TDT | Manama

Email : hussainm@newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain’s U17 men’s handball team return to the court today as they face Qatar in the bronze medal match of the first Asian Men’s U17 Handball Championship in Amman, Jordan.

The nationals, coached by Egyptian Mohamed Abdelrahman, will be looking to end the tournament on a positive note following a heavy 19-37 semi-final defeat to Iran on Tuesday.

In that contest, Bahrain were outclassed, falling behind 17-7 at halftime and unable to close the gap despite improvement after the break. The loss not only ended their title hopes but also saw them miss out on qualification for the IHF Men’s U17 Handball World Championship 2025 in Morocco.

Only the top two teams from Amman — Iran and South Korea — secured berths to the international event.

Today’s match against Qatar offers consolation for Bahrain. The Qataris were narrowly defeated 35-36 by South Korea in the other semi-final, and like Bahrain, will aim to leave the tournament with a podium finish.

Kick-off is scheduled for 4pm Bahrain time, followed by the gold medal match between Iran and South Korea at 6pm.

Bahrain’s squad includes captain Sayed Majeed Almuhafda, Sayed Omran Almuhafda, Ahmed Abdulla, Sayed Ali Ebrahim, Mahmood Ali Ahmed, Ali Adel Hasan, Mahdi Jaafar Ali, Jaffar Al Zain, Hasan Ali Saif, Sayed Mahmood Shubbar, Hussain Qasim Abadi, Sayed Nooh Ali, Mohamed Fathi Marzooq, Wadee Ali Hasan, and goalkeepers Mohammed Ali Hasan and Ali Mahdi Almahroos.

The tournament features 13 national teams under the Asian Handball Federation banner, with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Chinese Taipei, and Jordan having already secured fifth through eighth places.

Today will also see the final ranking for ninth through 13th place decided.