HK Košice defeated SKP Bratislava 35:27 in the Extraliga on Thursday afternoon. The home side claimed their first victory in five matches, ending a run that had left them rooted to ninth place. Bratislava, sitting seventh with an unbeaten record, found themselves on the wrong side of a match where the hosts ran away with it.
Košice had been struggling before this fixture. Their recent results read like a catalogue of disappointment — a draw against Zachoraci followed by defeats at the hands of Tatran Prešov, Považská Bystrica and Nové Zámky, with only a victory over Topoľčany to show for their opening month. To be fair, they came into this game knowing they needed something to change.
Bratislava arrived with four points from four games and a clean sheet of results. They had lost twice already — against Považská Bystrica and Modra — but had bounced back with wins over Topoľčany and Nové Zámky. By then you would have thought they should have too much for a Košice side that had lost three of their last four matches.
Instead, the hosts let the game flow and took control. The 35:27 scoreline tells the story without needing minute-by-minute detail. Košice opened up and kept their side in it, while Bratislava, who had been so solid in their unbeaten run, let the game slip away. The support of the fans could be called devoted, but that is an assessment, not a fact. The fact is that the club sits top of the table
The result leaves Košice with three points from five games — still ninth, but with momentum they lacked. Bratislava remain unbeaten but now carry one defeat from four matches. The gap between seventh and ninth is still two points, and this match did little to close it.
