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I made an error when I didn't go for a handicap on Cameroon against Nigeria, but I didn't know that their coach came to that match. Now they're complete, but they still lack quality. Two years ago Nigeria have proven that their handball is only heading downwards. They were 11th in the end. They didn't win in their group. But they came with certain ambitions to this championship, but these ambitions are not justified. They didn't have any real preparations or real preparation matches. The players were picked in the camp by what was seen there, but of course they didn't manage to get their game straight. All of the players except Kanu play in Nigeria, mostly young men with no real experience. Besides, they came with a lot of problems. As a country, Nigeria are in trouble, and that reflects on sport which is connected to finances. Gabon are stronger and more experienced. They did calm and good preparations and came here with big expectations. I've seen footage of both of their matches and they really look good. They were in a draw against Morocco for a long time and then they snapped. The same happened against Algeria. Today it won't because Nigeria are weaker than the mentioned teams and Gabon will have less room for errors which pulverized them against Algeria. A handicap for Gabon is quite certain. They have to win today if they want to stay in game. I believe it's going to be more convincing than just two goals of difference. Details

I expected more favoring of Fyllingen and I personally think these +1.5 on them are a gift. The situation is simple, Fyllingen are a better team right now in all segments, except maybe for the goalkeeper, even though Christensen has not been looking so good this season, but I might be wrong.
Fyllingen won both of their head-to-head games so far, away by 2 and at home by 8, only 2 weeks ago. Even though both teams say that today's game has nothing in common with the previous one, we should be realistic. If someone is better today, they will also be better in two weeks, because handball is not an individual sport where you can expect big changes in a small amount of time. There might be some tactical improvements, but Fyllingen are still the better team, and I stand behind that.
Bodo are 8th in the championship, they convincingly lost to the strongest teams (Elverum, Haslum, OIF). Fyllingen belong among those teams, and they proved that with their performances, they defeated Stavanger, Elverum, Haslum and Stord. Even though they have some slip ups behind them, they have simply shown more than Bodo so far in the season. They went over this margin in all competitions. The crucial thing for their win, in my opinion, is their offense which is at an average of 28.8 in comparison to Bodo's 25.4, which is significantly improved with the 46 goals they scored against lower league side Vestil in the Cup and 34 against Follo. When we would make the stats without Vestil, their average would have been 23.5. If this were a league game, the odds would be higher maybe even by two units.
We should point out that the games will be played at neutral court, and Bodo had their best performances at home where they have a great atmosphere.
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Halden will win this and this is first and foremost a sure bet, but the handicap is set quite low and you should make use of it. In the first head-to-head Halden won in an away match with +9. They went over five points of difference in four wins and twice against Kolstad, and once against Stord and Viking. They're in a four-home game winning run, and Viking have always been defeated in away matches. There's the question of motivation. Halden crushed the current champions in the last round and currently the leading team OIF, and they have great tactics. Viking, on the other hand, are at the verge of being knocked out, even though they think they still have time. They lost all away matches, and the special note is the -11 against Fyllinge. After that, Bodo beat them at home with five points of difference, and they're currently a lot weaker than Halden. The bet is favored by the fact that the hosts' confidence grew after beating OIF, and they will also be motivated because of their last home match this year. Details

Even though Kolstad are good, Elverum will win this. I didn't write a prediction for their first game because the handicap was set at 8.5 which was too much. Kolstad were still underestimated then, for a reason, of course, but that is not the case now. But, with all due respect, they are still far from Elverum's level. Of course, under the condition that the away team are mentally completely in the game. Only with a lack of their concentration and motivation the result I need would be absent as well, but I don't see a reason for that today. Elverum ended their Champions League adventure, they were eliminated from the Cup, and the league is all they have left. They are third on the league table, but the thing is that seventh-placed Fyllingen are only a point behind them, and they are playing at home. Runar also lost yesterday and they are still a point behind them, and Halden, who have the same number of points as they do, are facing OIF today. Apelgren will use the same, realistic, logic I am. They need to win today to get away from Kolstad, Runar, Halden and even Fyllingen. I have taken into account the fact that they are facing OIF on Saturday, but the handicap is low enough and I am not afraid that Apelgren will make many rotations. Also, in some sense, this is perhaps a more important game for Elverum, because their main goal is the play-off, and the Champions League, and it would also be great if they won the title. Since the seventh position is only a point behind them, play-off is far from secured.
With that, they had a week to rest and prepare, which doesn't happen often. Kolstad, on the other hand, had a difficult game against Halden on Wednesday. Another factor in all this is the question of feeder clubs. Some of Elverum's players played for Kolstad, Liaba was also supposed to go there, and there was controversy regarding him, because he said he wouldn't like to go back to Elverum anymore, which angered Elverum. A defeat to Kolstad would be a sort of an embarrassment.
The stats say that Elverum won 7 out of 11 games by over 2 goals. All wins, except for the first one against DHK were won by over 2. Kolstad don't suit me statistically, but I know what I saw in both teams and I am convinced that Elverum won't have a lot of problems today and that they can win by at least 3. If the difference was 4.5, I wouldn't pick this. But this way it has great value. Details

Haslum, Runar, Halden, BSK, Fyllingen - those teams have a similar game style, fast rhythm first of all. With good offenses and well-played actions, that brings more goals. Of course, with oscillations that depend on the opponents' defenses.
So, here we have two of the best three offenses of the league. Haslum score 28.5 per game, Runar 29. They're the third and the first offense of the league, only six goals apart. Haslum are better because of the better defense and two great goalies, which definitely isn't the case with Runar - only Stord and Viking conceded more than them, and those two will probably get eliminated. Zanotti started focusing the game on the goal more lately because it became clear to him that he won't be winning the games with his defense. That's not an issue because Perez is in top shape. No need to play clever. The ball makes two rounds, perhaps, gets to Perez who feigns defense and then assists. Lately, most ofte nto Kapular who's strong. If that doesn't work, then Pavlovics and Nilsson can solve the things from the outside. Their defense were very bad so far. They only played well against BSK, but I don't know what was wrong with BSK in that game. They were cemented. They did the same against Fyllingen who scored 30. Even with those 30 conceded, the goalie Risoy was named the best Runar player in that match. Probably because he "only" conceded 13 in the second half-time, progress compared to 17 in the first. As for the statistics, Haslum and this margin are at 4/12, Runar at 8/12, 5 of which in the last 6. If BSK didn't have one of those days, even that would go over. The statistics aren't as important as Runar's game. If Haslum score 30, which I'm sure they will, this will be a success. The way I'm thinking, this should get closer to 60. Runar can score 25 to make it enough, and that seems likely to happen considering they scored under that only twice.
The first match ended at 52, which is why this margin is suggested, but Runar played an awful second half-time then, scoring 8, and that was thanks to themselves, not Haslum. There's no way they'll do that again today because they looked lifeless in that game, and Zanotti gave them a lesson afterwards. I don't think they will do the same today.
The last reason, not less important, is that both teams played only two days ago. They didn't have much time to get ready, especially the defense. I don't think they were able to do anything well, other than a regenerative practice. Details

Haslum's win is a sure bet, but we should use the handicap offered, it worked fine against Stord, as well. I've seen that game, and the one against Halden. It was like black and white. The reason is because it was their third game in a week, and the second away one. Despite that, they covered the handicap. The defense were miraculous against Halden, together with Tjemsland, and if they do the same today, this should be more convincing than only three goals difference. BSK played awful against Runar's defense. haslum are much better than Runar defensively, and they've got two top notch goalies. The guests are coming with a 6-game winning streak, every time over this margin. The fact that they're playing away is irrelevant, they proved it against Elverum, and sometimes it seems it's even easier for them to play away than at home, considering that the pressure is smaller. BSK are in a 3-game losing streak. Their previous game wasn't that difficult, they played the miserable Viking, the offensively impotent Bod, and Fyllingen's thoughts were somewhere else. They'll have a hard time getting the points today, though. They lost convincingly to Drammen, OIF and Elverum here. The big plus is the fact that Haslum had over two weeks to get ready for this game and recharge their batteries. They've got a great chance to get six points by the end of the half-season, and I'm convinced they'll take it. Details

Stord are about to collapse, they don't have the quality, and from this week, they don't have a coach. Holm left, and his place was taken by an excellent sports director who has no coaching experience. Money started to be mentioned, and that's never good. They played really bad against Kolstad. Had Aagard not defended that well, the result would be even worse. Today they're up against an even better defense, but also a better offense. OIF are in a terrific run. They crushed Bodo in an away match. They allowed them only five goals in the first half, but I think Stord have an even worse offense. Unlike Kolstad, OIF have a wider roster. Out of four away matches, OIF won three with more than five goals of difference. They were only short against BSK who are a better team than Stord. The home tem lost to Elverum with seven points, away against Drammen with 11... Haslum were somewhat weaker, but we have to consider the fact that it was their third match in a week. In any case, OIF's win is a clear sure bet, but in this case I have to use the handicap. Details

MMTS cannot be absolute favorites today, with all due respect to everything they accomplished so far. They lost six out of 15 games, five of which were away. At home they only lost to Wisla by 12. They defeated others but not convincingly, and that is the key. They had problems with Gwardia, Pogon, and what's important for this bet, with Stala and Lubin. Except for those two results, they lost to Gwardia in the last round with bad offensive performance and they stayed at 19 goals. At that time, Glogow lost only to Wisla and to Kielce in the last round where they could have taken at least a point. Every team that comes that close to Kielce in this stage of the season deserves more respect. They have three straight away wins, and they have more chances today than the bookmakers might suggest, despite the fact that they are without Jurecki. In comparison to the first game, they are, in my opinion, even stronger considering the players that haven't played then, and they have proven lately that Jurecki's absence doesn't make their job harder. Besides, Glogow were seen as medal candidates ahead of the season, and with Rosinski and Jurecki's return, they will be even stronger. A defeat by less than 2 is a great option, but s clean 2 has great value today. However, the away team have the second-best defense int he league, and MMTS are not looking great in the offense. Details

Elverum and Halden share the fifth position, but they cannot be calm because BSK and Runar are close. On the other hand, the winner of today's game will jump over Fyllingen and Kolstad who have 13 points and get to the third position with 5 points behind OIF. Everything is probably clear here. Elverum are awaiting OIF in the last round before the break and that is an important information. If they win then, they will be only 3 points behind, and then the title battle will be open. Maybe OIF will slip up before that, but Elverum have to win first. I am writing that because I think it is an important motivation. The second is revenge. Halden eliminated them from the Cup when they weren't playing well, and had difficult schedule. That was their third back-to-back away game in only 6 days. Now Apelgren stated clearly that they 'have to pay for that'. I haven't read any of his statements similar to that since he arrived at Elverum. The atmosphere is clearly good because of good results and performances in the CL. Third motivation is Aanestad who is saying good bye to handball because of injuries. A farewell atmosphere is expected and there should be no slip up there. Last season Halden lost here by 10. I don't believe the away team will decide a lot. They are a good team, dangerous in offense, but great and motivated Elverum at home cannot stain their name with a defeat to Halden who could have a much more difficult task today against home team's great defense and Nergaard at goal who is great form. Details

I don't understand based on what are Drammen such favorites. They only won two games this season, against BSK I don't even know how, and against Viking who it is rather easy to defeat. They lost all other games, among them five league home games, and to Viking in the Cup. With Kolstad and Bodo, they have the worst offense that scored 25 goals on average. They are still not at the right level despite the fact that they have some of the best backs in the league, and good Loke at the line. They mostly rely on defense and don't rush. Stord have been playing much better lately. I watched them against BSK whom they could have defeated and they were very close against Haslum as well. That is the reason I cannot see how Drammen can defeat them by 5. The stats are clear and I won't talk much about it. More relevant for me is the fact that points are important, that DHK are not in such a form that they can demolish anyone, and that Stord are slowly improving which they showed against Haslum. Drammen's win maybe, but handicap unlikely. Details

I was watching Viking in the last round and they didn't leave an impression me at all, despite the 'only' -3 which pulverized my prediction. In fact, Viking aren't the one who did that, but Kolstad did because they were obviously under too much pressure. They missed sure goals and shot very badly because of which Lerang was the hero of the match. Despite that, not once since the start were they close to winning. Runar are offensively a lot better than Kolstad, but also more experienced, and they won't allow to embarrass themselves like that. The position on the table, but also the fixture in December doesn't allow them that and today I see the away team's clear win. In the offense Viking depend on Johannessen, and that's clear, but he can't do it alone. I don't see the home team over 26, 26 goals, and that will be enough for Runar who should come near 30. They usually lose on big numbers, but also when they're up against a better defense which Viking don't have. Even though this is, if you ask me, a sure bet with good odds, I will go with the handicap. Details

Ive seen Kolstad in a few games before they crushed Fyllingen last round. And they did really crush them. I saw a part of Viking's game against OIF because I was bored by how badly they were doing. Kolstad are brilliant at the moment, given what was expected from them. They lost only 3 championship games so far, two of which at the very start and one to OIF. A defeat to Halden is a different story. I'd even say that they tanked a bit because they don't need to worry about the cup this season. Liaba is in brilliant form, the defense is one of the top defenses in the league, Rajkovic is brilliant on the goal and he's not even in top form. All of that is enough for a handicap already. On top of everything, Viking lost a few players. When I asked about who will play today, they said it's not sure yet but top scorer Johannessen is very questionable. He scores 7-10 goals each game. The other two players are not that important. That plus Kolstad's defense makes this a pretty straightforward business. Besides, even with those three players, they lost here by 8 goals and Liaba didn't even play at Kolstad back then. The visitors went over this handicap 5 times in 7 defeats. If Elverum didn't make the mistakes of underestimating them, that game would finish in the same manner. Kolstad and the favorite, they want to show progress, while Viking most likely won't have three top players today. The visiting coach won't have much to choose from on the bench and that should get obvious.

We have to point out that Kolstad will have a tough schedule ahead. They are in for three though away games and the home game against Elverum next. Also, the players who are at university will have exams. They need three points today to be under less pressure in the following games. Details

Here we have a missed margin on over. It has clearly been done statistically, which realistically has nothing to do with what the teams have been displaying on the court.
In the championship, Halden have gone under 53 only twice this season and against completely defensive teams whose defenses are among the best in the league: OIF and Bodo. They also had some Cup unders againsr Enverum and Fyllingen. These are all names we don't need to explain further. They would also have gone over the margin against Fyllingen if they weren't holding back in the first half.
BSK were also in the under mostly at the start of the season when they didn't play well, and it was all in defeats, also against some teams that are primarily oriented on defense (Kolstad, OIF, Drammen). BSK have significantly improved since then which can be seen from their results, and in the last three games they went at 61, 57, 59. Their two opponents in those overs were Fyllingen and Stord, teams similar to Halden and their game playing style. Besides, Halden and BSK play similarly. They don't think too much about offense organization, they shoot quickly, and both have some of the best backs in the league. There are some other factors here as well. Their defenses are at over 35 on average, BSK's has played weakly against Stord which is my favor. At Halden, goalkeeper Bech is not in great form, BSK's backs are all healthy and in their strongest line up, etc. I don't see this game under 56. Pace, backs, counterattacks and goalkeepers out of form will not allow that. Details

I've seen Stord against BSK, and a bit of the duel between Haslum and Bodo, and the difference is huge. Stord look clueless offensively, and I don't think Holm had enough time to maneuver in just a few days. Haslum are the exact opposite. You can see that everyone knows exactly what they're supposed to do, both goalies are on form, and right after their saves, the team run to fastbreaks with no mercy. When the fastbreaks don't work, there are Roe, Barthold and Sonden to solve things. I can't imagine that after their game against Bodo, Haslum wouldn't get another convincing win against a team who lost to Bodo here, who don't have quality nor rotation. Besides, Olsson is important for the defense, but he's out. The handicap looks great for now. I think 2.5 are missed here regardless of the statistics. All of Haslum's win were by over 2 goals difference, and they stayed at 2 against Drammen. But they got a lot better since. Stord lost all their matches by 3. This bet shouldn't pass only if Haslum have the worst day ever, which I don't think will happen. Details

While writing this, I was expecting the handicap on Elverum to stay at 3.5, so these 1.5 sounds like a godsend. I don't understand why the bookmakers offered it, though. Runar are an average Norwegian first league team, and Elverum are playing the CL group, and pretty well, too. Runar lost the last three first league matches, and struggled against a lower league team in a Cup match, winning thanks to penalty shots. They lost points to Bodo who are at the bottom of the table and who lost to Haslum by 16 the other day. Elverum only lost away matches to OIF and Fyllingen this season, and against Haslum who inexplicably blundered after the first half-time, getting Apelgren pissed off. Those three teams are the best of the league so far, so those losses are kind of justified. So, this handicap doesn't look justified at all to me. Besides, Elverum lost only one of the last 12 matches, and the last time they lost here was in 2012 when Runar were much better. Still, I'll wait with my pick till the end because of Perez, because he's questionable. If he doesn't play, then this is almost a sure bet. But even if he does play, Runar will lose this by at least two goals difference. Details

BSK have been great in the last three matches. Their back line is extremely powerful which they've proven with the number of scored goals against two teams who are far better than Stord. Stord don't have enough quality to take points here. The difference in shape and quality is far on the side of the hosts who should additionally be strengthened by Hauge who is surely playing today, and this should be BSK's convincing win way over the missed handicap. They left Viking at -6, the very strong Fyllingen at -7, and Bodo at -9 (away!), even though it could have been more convincing considering that it was -10 at half-time. Stord lost all of their matches with three or more points of difference. I expect a similar outcome like in the match against Halden. BSK play similarly, quickly and efficiently, and this will go over six points of difference. Details

I hoped for this margin and I got it. I will start with their head-to-head games. Since 2005, they faced each other 27 times. They were under 53 only six times. Their last game went at 65. Elverum's average this season is 55,2, They were under 53 in five out of 16 games. Their average of scored goals in the championship is at 29,4 and of conceded at 24,7 which also fits in statistically. They were under against DHK, but that was at the very start of the season, and after that against Bodo, Stord and Halden in the Cup when they lost away game. Bodo and Stord are defensive teams, and with that they make a lot of mistakes in the offense and we couldn't even count on them to score 20 goals. Haslum are quite different. They play fast, rely on counterattacks and fast transition a lot. Their average is 54.7, and 27.4 of scored goals. I think it would be enough if they scored 24 today. They were under only against OIF and Kolstad who are great defensively and currently better than Elverum and Haslum. The only negative thing is that they stopped Fyllingen at 21 in the last round, but Fyllingen rely too much on Tangen anyway and they lack the width and quality in all positions that Elverum have. Today I expect Elverum to win and lead the game. Mitrovic and Mehl have improved, Stegavik has been in fine form from the start, and Lindboe will run into counterattacks. On the other side, Schonningsen, Roe and Sondena are also great and this should be a game for an extra goal. In favor of this bet is also the information that Nergaard is questionable for Elverum. If he does play, I hope that injury still left a mark on him. Kadetten are also there, and they are coming to face Elverum this weekend so they could be saving themselves a little today. Details

Fyllingen are the favorites according to the bookies but that's not realistic. The odds were set based on the previous results, which all happened for a certain reason. Halden lost to OIF because OIF are the top team of the league and because that was the first game without Carlsen, the key man on the team over the past two seasons. They lost to Fyllingen because they lost power in the last ten minutes and focusing on Tangen only wasn't a great idea either. That will not happen today . They lost to Bodo because they played that game only three days after the Fyllingen game. They were exhausted but went on to win the next three games easily. Skillhammar has made massive improvements since the start of the season to become the third best scorer . He will cause trouble for Fyllingen again. To make things even better, Holm, Hygaaard and Hendriksen improved as well, Bech is now one of the top goal keepers in the league and there is also Carlsen, who will be massive help today. Halden had enough time to rest and prepare for this. Fyllingen are good but they depend on Tangen too much. I think Halden's back field is better I think, just like their counterattacking. They lost to BSK, a team similar to Halden and to Haslum, who crushed them home, limiting them to only 21 goals.I saw Halden's game against Runar and I was amazed by their game. They are very motivated today, they'll do their best to reach the final, they are in better form, they are playing home and Carlsen is back. The bookies didn't take Carsen's comeback into consideration but his team is better anyway. The bet is available on unibet and 10bet as well. Details

Over seems like a very good option here. On average, Runar scored 28 goals per match, and the only thing that spoiled that average were the miserable 20 goals against Kolstad's great defense which Halden doesn't have. The other spoil is 22 goals against Haslum when they scored only eight goals in the second half. They won't repeat such an edition today because they're playing at home and they've progressed since then. As for the conceded goals go, the second-league Charlottenlund scored 25 after the regular part, Drammen scored 30 against them, Stord 29... All teams who are fighting to stay in the league. Halden are offensively a lot stronger. In the last two matches they scored 34 goals, the same as against Viking. As for Bodo, Elverum and OIF, they scored a lot less, but Runar don't have such a defense. Skillhammar started taking a lot of shots and he scores a lot, and the whole team is used to Carlsen's absence. Today I even give them a chance to win. All in all, it will be enough for one team to come near 30 goals, and both are capable of that. Their defenses are not the ones who would stop that, so the over 53 is almost certain. Details

Arendal will maybe win, but I don't believe they will do it with more than five goals of difference and I will try to make use of that. This season the champions with over five beat Halden and Drammen. That was Halden's first match without Carlsen and they didn't know how to play without him. Drammen are a story of their own. They're not set up, they don't have confidence, they make too many errors in the offense and that brings the other team to counter-attacks. Against well set-up teams such as Halsum, BSK and Elverum they had a tougher time, but they couldn't even crush the very weak Stord. I watched Kolstad play against Halsum and Drammen. They're very aggressive and agile in their defense, and behind that defense stands the great Rajkovic as the goalkeeper whose shape is excellent. In the offense they have the great Liaba who will not stay in Kolstad for long and who scores a lot of goals. Kolstad won here in the preparations without a couple of players, and you have to respect that. The defenses should be key today and I don't believe Arendal will do so well here that they will crush the away team. Details