Industria Kielce opened their EHF Champions League campaign with a narrow 30-29 victory over Swiss champions HC Kriens-Luzern at Hala Legionów in Kielce.
Slovenian back Aleks Vlah proved decisive in the closing minutes, scoring three crucial goals and drawing a two-minute penalty to rescue the Polish champions after a second-half slump threatened to ruin their opening match.
The win came hours after Industria Kielce announced that Karol Bielecki, one of the most distinguished players in Polish handball history, had been appointed as the club's new president. Speaking at a specially convened press conference before throw-off, Bielecki said that having helped the team achieve success on the court, he wanted to continue doing so in a new administrative role.
Bielecki is an iconic figure in Kielce, having previously represented the club as a powerful left back during a distinguished playing career that included multiple domestic titles and international honors with the Polish national team.
Early lead and first half control
On the court, Kielce took control early, establishing a 6-3 lead within the first eight minutes of play. However, Kriens-Luzern responded quickly, leveling the score at 10-10 after just over 15 minutes at the Hala Legionów arena in Kielce.
The Swiss visitors struggled to get support from goalkeeper Kristian Pilipovic, who ended the first half with a save rate of just 10 percent. In contrast, Kielce goalkeeper Dejan Milosavljev delivered a far stronger performance between the posts.
Milosavljev's saves allowed Kielce to rebuild their lead, capitalizing on periods playing with a double numerical advantage. Centre back Piotr Jędraszczyk added three late goals in the closing minutes of the half to give Kielce a 19-15 lead at the break.
Second half slump and tactical rally
The Polish champions suffered a marked decline in performance after the restart. Milosavljev was unable to maintain his first-half intervention rate, while Kriens-Luzern's goalkeeper began making vital saves, frustrating Kielce attacks from pivot Artsem Karalek and right back Julien Bos.
Kielce scored only four goals during the opening 15 minutes of the second half, allowing Kriens-Luzern to close the gap to a single goal. The slump prompted coach Krzysztof Lijewski to rally his team during the break, reminding them that the match would not win itself and warning that their opponents would not give up.
Lijewski, a former Polish international right back who now serves on Kielce's coaching staff, saw his words spark only a temporary revival. Although Kielce stretched their advantage back to three goals with eight minutes remaining, Kriens-Luzern quickly pulled within one goal again in the closing stages.
Decisive finish and group outlook
With the game on the line, Vlah delivered when it mattered most. The Slovenian international scored three times in the final minutes and drew a two-minute suspension against a Kriens defender to secure the 30-29 win for Kielce.
The hard-fought victory marks a positive start following a disappointing Champions League campaign last season. Although Kielce easily navigated Group A a year ago, they failed to reach the quarter-finals after being eliminated in the first knockout round by Hungarian side Pick Szeged.
This season features a new Champions League format in which teams are split into six groups of four. The top two teams in each group advance to the second group phase, while the lower two teams drop into the EHF European League. Kielce and Kriens-Luzern compete in a group that also features German champions Magdeburg and Norwegian runners-up Kolstad.
