Elverum beat Fjellhammer 21:32 in the NM Cup on Wednesday evening. The visitors maintained their momentum from recent victories, while the hosts found themselves on the wrong side of a familiar pattern. We had tipped the away side to win, and that confidence held at 74 per cent.
By then, Elverum had already shown they can raise the tempo when they need to. Their last five games included wins over Kristiansand, Sandnes, Bergen, Viking and Lillehammer's LFH09 — a solid run that suggested they wouldn't be rattled on this ground. Fjellhammer's results told a different story, with losses to Kolstad, Kristiansand and Drammen HK among their recent setbacks.
And here's the thing about away fixtures in cup competitions. The visitors didn't need to turn it around after the break because they never went behind. They went for the jugular early, and once they sensed blood, they never let up. The scoreline reflected that control without drama.
To be fair, the hosts aren't without merit. Their 30:30 draw against Kristiansand and 23:22 win over Arendal showed they can compete at this level. But consistency is what separates teams that hang on from those that build comfortable leads.
The result extends Elverum's positive sequence and adds another chapter to their cup campaign. For Fjellhammer, it's a setback they'll look to bounce back from — they've been on a mixed run, and cup matches tend to expose those inconsistencies.