Goppingen and Kiel met in the Bundesliga on Saturday, with the visitors taking a narrow 31:32 victory away from home. The result keeps Kiel two points clear at third place while Goppingen remain rooted to twelfth after just two matches.
Kiel came into the fixture having won both opening games, accumulating four points from their first two outings. Goppingen, by contrast, had taken one win and one draw to sit on two points, though their position reflected more inconsistency than anything else.
We had given Goppingen the edge on paper, placing confidence at 58 per cent for a home win. The match went another way entirely, and here's the thing — Kiel's efficiency in the final quarter changed what looked like a evenly balanced contest.
The visitors' recent form tells a story of steady improvement, with scores of 36:28 and 35:27 against Bittigheim and Lemgo respectively. Goppingen's own run included a 18:31 defeat to Melsungen on Wednesday, which may have weighed on their legs more than we expected.
Kiel now sit four points clear of their nearest challengers in the top half, while Goppingen's gap to safety remains unmeasurable with three more fixtures ahead. The draw brought them together early in the season, but this result suggests Kiel have already found their rhythm.