The Netherlands men claimed their third shootout victory out of four games they’ve played in the new FIH Hockey Pro League season so far.
An action-packed afternoon in Amsterdam saw the home side playing to another draw with neighbours Belgium. This time there were six goals scored in the match before the Dutch edged the win in the shootout.
(Men’s) Netherlands 3 – 3 Belgium (SO: 3 – 1)
The Netherlands and Belgium played out a riveting 3-3 draw for a share of the points, with the hosts going on to clinch the shootout win for a bonus point.
The trend through the opening matches of the FIH Hockey Pro League this season has been for fast starts and Tom Boon provided another, opening the scoring for Belgium after just 33 seconds with a shot that broke through the back of the net.
Less than a minute later his goalkeeper, Loic van Doren, was making an excellent glove save from a penalty corner to deny Jip Janssen an equaliser. There were more nervous moments for Belgium as Arthur de Sloover made a PC save on the post before Thibeau Stockbroekx snapped a shot wide of the Dutch goal.
Koen Bijen then levelled the scores in the 11th minute, dispossessing a defender on the goal line as he was trying to clear after a brave save. Play ebbed and flowed as a breathtaking first quarter came to an end with both teams showing serious attacking intent.
Van Doren made another excellent diving PC save for Belgium in the 18th minute as the Dutch enjoyed a period of ascendancy, but the Belgians reclaimed the lead in the 22nd minute, Stockbroekx picking up a rebound off the first wave runner and clattering it home.
The tempo of play showed no sign of dropping, with opportunities coming fast and furious before the Dutch equalised in the 27th minute. A Belgian penalty corner ricocheted hard off the post for Tijmen Reyenga to return up-field and feed Casper van der Veen for the deftest of deflections. Bijen worked hard for his second goal with a diving deflection at the right post in the 28th minute and the hosts led 3-2 at half-time.
The frantic pace continued into the second half with the Dutch missing the target in the opening minute. Belgium won plenty of penalty corners through the third quarter, but the Dutch dominated play, probing the Belgian circle repeatedly, testing Van Doren at regular intervals, and enjoying numerical supremacy when the Belgian skipper was yellow-carded for having too many players on the pitch.
Belgium levelled the scores somewhat against the momentum of the match, with a trademark Boon drag flick in the 45th minute setting up a thrilling finish. There were good chances at both ends in the opening exchanges of the final quarter before Belgium enjoyed a period of control culminating in a series of penalty corners in the 53rd minute, and some half chances two minutes later, but Maurits Visser was sharp in the Dutch goal as the clock ticked down.
The home crowd endured a roller coaster in the final two minutes with real chances at both ends. The Dutch had a golden opportunity to win the game, only for the Red Lions to break out and finish the match on the attack. Visser made a crucial save in the Dutch goal with seconds remaining, sending his team to their third shootout from four matches where they retained their 100 per cent record for a bonus point.
The Player of the Match was awarded to Floris Wortelboer of the Netherlands who said: “I’m not satisfied. I think we did a few things quite well but in the end there, we played to 3-3. I think at a certain moment, when we were 2-3, then we had to push and score for 4-2, but we didn’t do that so of course it’s disappointing. In the end, it was a game with good plusses and also some things we need to develop.”
Current Hero Top Scorers:
Women – Vanessa Blockmans (BEL), Charlotte Englebert (BEL) (3 goals)
Men – Tom Boon (BEL) (5 goals)
To see the current standings in the FIH Hockey Pro League, click here.
FIH Hockey Pro League – 8 December 2024
Wagener Stadion, Amsterdam (NED)
MEN
Result: Match 5 (M)
Netherlands 3 – 3 Belgium (SO: 3 – 1)
Player of the match: Floris Wortelboer (NED)
Umpires: Alison Keogh (IRL), Bruce Bale (ENG), Dan Barstow (ENG-video)
