… stingy defense anchored by goalkeeper Josip Pavic and a strong attack spearheaded by Sandro Sukno, Miho Boskovic and Niksa Dobud . So how good was Croatia? Ask Valentino Gallo, whose Italy team was unfortunate enough face the champion twice …
… scratches and welts, and sometimes the swimsuits are in tatters. ''If you punch someone, someone punches you,'' said Niksa Dobud , a center forward for Croatia's men's team. ''So we try to play normally without punches.'' Has he ever punched …
… Wednesday with Group A winner Croatia, who closed out the preliminary stage Monday with an easy 12-4 win. Croatia's Niksa Dobud said the preliminary matches are meaningless. ''If we lose there we go home, so we need to be good at the right …