Day 3 of Wheelchair Rugby Euros Provides Plenty of Thrillers

On Day 3 of the International Wheelchair Rugby Federation (IWRF) European Championships in Nottwil, Switzerland, on Wednesday (5 October), both Sweden and Belgium continued their winning streaks in Pool A.

Tournament favourites Sweden defeated Denmark, 49-46, as defending champion Belgium beat Austria, 53-46. Barring any surprise results in their games today against Finland and Denmark, respectively, the two will meet on Friday to decide the top two spots in Pool A.

Elsewhere in Pool A, Finland won its second game of the tournament, 50-43, to condemn the Netherlands to its third consecutive defeat.

Both the Netherlands and Austria have to yet to win a game this tournament, however, both will be optimistic of changing that when the two sides meet Thursday.

Pool B is shaping up to an ultra-competitive group with four teams each having the same playing record of won two, lost one.

Having won its first two games, Poland suffered its first loss, 43-42, in a thrilling encounter at the hands Switzerland. The host nation now has two wins, as does France, which bounced back from Tuesday’s defeat to Poland, to beat Germany, 42-39.

After suffering a shock loss to France in its opening game, Great Britain appears to have found its stride and on Wednesday beat Ireland, 53-31, to record its second consecutive victory.

Thursday’s schedule consists of six more pool games (all times CET):

8:30 Poland-Ireland (Pool B)

10:30 Germany-Great Britain (Pool B)

12:30 Finland-Sweden (Pool A)

14:30 Belgium-Denmark (Pool A)

16:30 Austria-Netherlands (Pool A)

18:30 Switzerland-France (Pool B)

Following pool play, medal-round games will commence on Saturday and conclude on Sunday. Three qualification spots for the London 2012 Paralympic Games are up for grabs for the medal winners, excluding Great Britain, which has automatically qualified for next year as the host nation.