Notterøy secured a narrow 30:29 victory over Asane in the 1st division on Sunday, closing out a match that tightened considerably in the final moments. The home side had looked comfortable enough through the opening periods, but Asane refused to let the game slip away quietly. By then, every point carried weight in what became a contest decided by margins.
Notterøy sat fifth in the table with four points from three games, two wins and a draw keeping them clear of the drop zone. Asane occupied eleventh with just two points—another win and two draws, but no losses to speak of. To be fair, neither side had anything to prove yet, but the hosts needed this result more than the visitors could afford to lose.
We had tipped Asane to come away with something, placing fifty per cent confidence on a visitors' win, but the match refused to follow that script. Notterøy dug in when it mattered, closing the game out rather than letting Asane drift back into it. And here's the thing—sometimes the deeper squad makes the difference when legs go heavy.
The home side's recent form had been mixed, with a heavy 33:27 defeat to Lillestrøm and a narrow 27:26 loss to Røyer Stavanger among their last results. Asane came in with a 39:23 hammering from Charlottenlund and a 26:35 win over Kragerø HK. Neither run suggested either team was peaking, which perhaps explained why the match stayed so close throughout.
The result leaves Notterøy four points from Asane in the standings, a gap that could widen or shrink depending on what comes next. One point separates them from safety, and one point separates Asane from the top half. Things came to a head on Sunday, and the hosts had the edge when it counted.