It was a thrilling afternoon session here in Belarus at the EuroHockey Indoor Championships as the business end of the Tournament kicked off with the Relegation C Pool, as Belgium, Austria, Czech and Ukraine battled it out to qualify for the next Indoor World Cup and stay in the Championship Division. In addition The Netherlands and Germany played a hard fought incredibly competitive and fast first semi-final, closely followed by the second semi-final of the day – the hosts Belarus v Poland.
Belgium v Austria 2-2
Belgium went ahead via Tiphaine DUQUESNE, the only goal of the first half. Austria equalised via Kristine VUKOVICH in the 1-1, Austria stretched their lead via Julia BUSCH with a wonderful strike. Belgium pressed hard and equalised again from a Charlotte vander GRACHT corner.
| Team | Minute | Shirt # | Player | Action | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | 19 | 19 | DUQUESNE Tiphaine | Field Goal | 1 – 0 |
| Austria | 25 | 19 | VUKOVICH Kristine | Penalty Corner | 1 – 1 |
| Austria | 33 | 11 | BUSCH Julia | Field Goal | 1 – 2 |
| Belgium | 38 | 7 | vander GRACHT Charlotte | Penalty Corner | 2 – 2 |
Ukraine v Czech Republic 2-3
Ukraine and Czech Republic battled it out for the points as both teams want to avoid relegation from the Championship Division. Ukraine were ahead 2-0 at the half. Czech were the better of the two sides after the break with Adela BIZOVA striking a PC home. Ukraine stretched ahead again in the 39th minute as Czech had opted for a power play. They were rewarded with a goal but as the seconds ticked down it was too little too late. Ukraine took the points and are safe in this Division in 2018.
| Team | Minute | Shirt # | Player | Action | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ukraine | 7 | 31 | VORUSHYLO Yana | Penalty Stroke | 0 – 1 |
| Ukraine | 20 | 11 | SHEVCHENKO Yuliia | Penalty Corner | 0 – 2 |
| Czech Republic | 22 | 13 | BIZOVA Adela | Penalty Corner | 1 – 2 |
| Ukraine | 39 | 31 | VORUSHYLO Yana | Penalty Corner | 1 – 3 |
| Czech Republic | 40 | 13 | BIZOVA Adela | Field Goal | 2 – 3 |
Ranking Pool C:
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ukraine | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| 2 | Czech Republic | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 |
| 3 | Austria | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -5 | 1 |
| 4 | Belgium | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -5 | 1 |
Netherlands v Germany 5-2
Both teams were full of intent as the game started at a very high pace, with both teams having chances to get to the final. Germany opened the scoring in the 9th minute and the reply came in the 12th minute. Before the half Lieke van WIJK struck home a stroke when an earlier PC was upgraded. In the second half both teams attacked strongly, but it was another stroke that put the World and European Champions ahead 3-1. In a feisty last 10 minutes Germany played 2 power plays and gained one goal but conceded 2 more, putting the Netherlands into the EuroHockey Final for a second time.
| Team | Minute | Shirt # | Player | Action | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 9 | 10 | DUDOROV Julia | Field Goal | 0 – 1 |
| Netherlands | 12 | 8 | MUYSELAAR Mila | Penalty Corner | 1 – 1 |
| Netherlands | 18 | 11 | van WIJK Lieke | Penalty Stroke | 2 – 1 |
| Netherlands | 29 | 11 | van WIJK Lieke | Penalty Stroke | 3 – 1 |
| Germany | 32 | 14 | MÜLLER-WIELAND Roda | Penalty Corner | 3 – 2 |
| Netherlands | 34 | 11 | van WIJK Lieke | Penalty Stroke | 4 – 2 |
| Netherlands | 35 | 9 | ZWINKELS Donja | Field Goal | 5 – 2 |
Belarus v Poland 1-1
In the second semi-final, it was another full on cracking game with the hosts going ahead in the 11th minute. Just before the half Navitskaya pulled off a spectacular save from a stroke to keep the hosts ahead by the narrow margin of one goal at half-time. Just after the break Poland equalised and then it was ‘game on’. Poland’s MIKA and KATERLA held possession for long periods of time, patiently building up the play from the back, linking with WIELOCH. With 4 minutes to go Poland’s scorer SLAWINSKA went on the attack but Belarus’ defence held firm with clean strong tackles, ending any possibility of Poland going ahead. Belarus forced a corner with just over 2 minutes on the clock, but Poland’s keeper held her nerve and cleared the ball. At the end of the game the score remained 1-1 and we went to Shoot Outs. One round was not enough to separate the teams and with the 10th Shoot Out Poland’s Amelia KATERLA put Poland into their first European final.
| Team | Minute | Shirt # | Player | Action | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belarus | 11 | 3 | KURHANSKAYA Yuliya | Field Goal | 1 – 0 |
| Poland | 23 | 15 | SLAWINSKA Paula | Penalty Corner | 1 – 1 |
Shoot Out:
| Team | Attacker | Defender | Result | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poland | SLAWINSKA Paula | NAVITSKAYA Maryna | No Goal | 0 – 0 |
| Belarus | PAPKOVA Krestina | GABARA Anna | Goal | 1 – 0 |
| Poland | KATERLA Amelia | NAVITSKAYA Maryna | No Goal | 1 – 0 |
| Belarus | BATURA Ryta | GABARA Anna | No Goal | 1 – 0 |
| Poland | WIELOCH Joanna | NAVITSKAYA Maryna | Goal | 1 – 1 |
| Belarus | KURHANSKAYA Yuliya | GABARA Anna | No Goal | 1 – 1 |
| Belarus | PAPKOVA Krestina | GABARA Anna | Goal | 2 – 1 |
| Poland | SLAWINSKA Paula | NAVITSKAYA Maryna | Goal | 2 – 2 |
| Belarus | BATURA Ryta | GABARA Anna | No Goal | 2 – 2 |
| Poland | KATERLA Amelia | NAVITSKAYA Maryna | Goal | 2 – 3 |
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Main photograph: Poland celebrates (FFU PRESS AGENCY COPYRIGHT FRANK UIJLENBROEK and All Galleries)