Koning crowns Den Bosch FINAL4 win over arch rivals Amsterdam
Den Bosch snatched the second EHL Women’s GRAND FINAL place as they rescued a draw with 74 seconds to go and subsequently produced a perfect shoot-out set to beat AH&BC Amsterdam.
EHL WOMEN’S FINAL4: AH&BC Amsterdam 1 (M Veen) Den Bosch 1 (F Matla), Den Bosch win shoot-out 4-3
Den Bosch snatched the second EHL Women’s GRAND FINAL place as they rescued a draw with 74 seconds to go and subsequently produced a perfect shoot-out set to beat AH&BC Amsterdam.
Coming into the tie, Amsterdam had gone unbeaten in their last seven meetings with their Dutch rivals but Den Bosch almost got off to the dream start when Pien Sanders got fired into the sideboard with an inviting chance 30 seconds into the game.
It was tough and physical from the start with the Brabant club taking it to the Wagener Stadium hosts with Lidewij Welten going great guns.
She won a corner which was subsequently improved to a stroke for a body on the line but Ireen van den Assem’s effort from the spot was smothered by her international team mate Anne Veenendaal.
Two more Den Bosch corners were blocked away in Q2 with Frédérique Matla’s dizzying spin blocked and then a powerful push skimmed the outside of the post.
As time wore on, though, Amsterdam came more and more into the game with Veen at the heart of most of their big moments. She drew a cracking foot-save from Josine Koning in the 23rd minute and, from the next attack, Michelle Fillet’s excellent turnover set up a three-on-two with Veen’s shot blocked over.
That momentum continued into the second half and the opening goal came when Lauren Stam, from the left sideline, picked out Sosha Benninga who dug the ball out from under her nose and into the path of Veen. She came onto the ball at pace and flicked high over Koning for a narrow lead.
Indeed, it was not a comfortable one as Laura Nunnink’s deflection and a shot from Sanders threatened their resolve. In reply, Freeke Moes fired a reverse-stick shot just wide and a corner deflection move went similarly close to killing off the game in the last six minutes.
Matla was somehow denied an equaliser with four minutes to go when her ingenuity saw her weave into a pocket of space in the circle. There, she unleashed a brilliant shot but it came back off the inside of the post to keep Amsterdam just in front.
But 74 seconds from the end, Matla did get her goal, a brilliant tip-in from Rosa Fernig’s similarly perfect cross on the backhand from the left-wing.
And Den Bosch were able to take that positive outlook into the shoot-out where Sanders, Matla, Welten and Sanne Koolen all scored while Josin Koning saved a stroke from Eva de Goede in the first round and then, decisively, kept out Lauren Stam to win it 4-3.