Today of course, was all about the tournament! We met at the clubhouse bright and early (7:30am) and drove to the stadium in Leeuwarden. Despite the rainy weather, everyone was excited, pumped and ready to play ball. Today we play three games – all games are 2x 15 minute halves. We, New Zealand as a country are currently ranked #21st in the IKF World Korfball Rankings, and today we play Catalonia (ranked #8), Portugal (ranked #9) and Netherlands (ranked #1 of course) – so we knew we had a tough day ahead of us.
Arrived at the Stadium
Opening Ceremony
Game 3: NZ v Catalonia - Tournament Game 1
We started off slow and Catalonia punished us early. It took a while for us to get some rhythm. We gave away 4 penalty shots in the first half, and Catalonia nailed them all. But we also scored a penalty for ourselves and a few other nice goals which took us into the second half with a score of 6-11. We were feeling a lot more confident for the second half, as we could feel that we were starting to build some momentum. We came out strong in the second half, scoring a few consecutive goals, bringing the score to within just two points (13-11). However, unfortunatley, we could not hold on and we ended the match four points short. Overall, we were really happy with our performance. We recognise that we gave away 5 penalties, so without these goals, we could have won the match. We felt proud of our performance, but disappointed in the loss.
Half time score: 11-6 to Catalonia.
Final Score: 16-12 to Catalonia (second half score was 5-6 to NZ)
Points scored by: Chelsea (1), Juliet (3), Sam (4), Boris (4)
Half time score: 11-6 to Catalonia.
Final Score: 16-12 to Catalonia (second half score was 5-6 to NZ)
Points scored by: Chelsea (1), Juliet (3), Sam (4), Boris (4)
Preparing for the Game
Game 4: NZ v Portugal - Tournament Game 2
Everyone was really pumped for this game, we had drawn a lot of confidence from our narrow loss against Catalonia and we had the belief that would could take out this “must-win” match. We needed to win this game to achieve our goal of a Top 8 finish in the tournament.
The whole game was very evenly matched. Everyone was working really hard for each other for the majority of the game. We were able to take a nice early lead of 3-1. But throughout the game, just when we were able to pull ahead into a nice lead, Portugal fought back. We were tied at the end of the first half and we were tied at the end of the second. This meant, we had to try to win it in Golden Goal.
Everyone was really pumped and confident going into the final 5 minute stanza. Boris scored in our first attack and we had faith in our excellent defending team to keep them out. Somehow, unfortunately, they were able to score a freak long shot which meant we had to keep playing it out. The game ended as we were not able to score on our next attack whereas Portugal nailed another freak long shot. Our hearts broke as our goal of finishing in the Top 8 was now unachievable.
Half time score: 6-6 tie
Full time Score: 12-12 tie
Golden Goal: 2-1 to Portugal.
Final Score: 14-13 to Portugal.
Points scored by: Talesha (1), Michelle (1), Matt (1), Chelsea (2), Sam (2), Boris (6)
Despite the disappointing loss, the players should all hold their heads high. They played hard and fought hard and achieved more than many people thought we were capable of. They have certainly done New Zealand proud.
The whole game was very evenly matched. Everyone was working really hard for each other for the majority of the game. We were able to take a nice early lead of 3-1. But throughout the game, just when we were able to pull ahead into a nice lead, Portugal fought back. We were tied at the end of the first half and we were tied at the end of the second. This meant, we had to try to win it in Golden Goal.
Everyone was really pumped and confident going into the final 5 minute stanza. Boris scored in our first attack and we had faith in our excellent defending team to keep them out. Somehow, unfortunately, they were able to score a freak long shot which meant we had to keep playing it out. The game ended as we were not able to score on our next attack whereas Portugal nailed another freak long shot. Our hearts broke as our goal of finishing in the Top 8 was now unachievable.
Half time score: 6-6 tie
Full time Score: 12-12 tie
Golden Goal: 2-1 to Portugal.
Final Score: 14-13 to Portugal.
Points scored by: Talesha (1), Michelle (1), Matt (1), Chelsea (2), Sam (2), Boris (6)
Despite the disappointing loss, the players should all hold their heads high. They played hard and fought hard and achieved more than many people thought we were capable of. They have certainly done New Zealand proud.
Game 5: NZ v Netherlands - Tournament Game 3
Even though we were all feeling very disappointed after the heartbreak against Portugal, we still had to get our heads back in the game for our face-off against the World's greatest! We were realistic in our expectations of this match. The team were able to recognise that playing against the Netherlands, in the Netherlands, is a privilege and a dream opportunity to learn from the best. We discussed that any goal scored and any defensive victories need to be celebrated as big successes. Earlier today The Netherlands bet Portugal 32-4 and Catalonia 31-3, therefore we set ourselves two goals. 1) to score 5 or more goals and 2) to keep The Netherlands to 30 or under. Also, of course, we aimed to have fun and learn a lot.
The game started really well and due to a great shot by Boris, we were 1-1 even scored with the Netherlands at one stage! Of course, the Netherlands soon started a scoring frenzy, but we held our heads high and never gave up. By the end of the game, there were smiles beaming across everyone's faces as we achieved our goals and this was truly something to celebrate! It was a good way to end a very tough day.
Half time score: 15-4 to Netherlands
Final Score: 29-6 to Netherlands
Points scored by: Kennedy (1), Chelsea (1), Ned (1), Sam (1), Boris (2)
The game started really well and due to a great shot by Boris, we were 1-1 even scored with the Netherlands at one stage! Of course, the Netherlands soon started a scoring frenzy, but we held our heads high and never gave up. By the end of the game, there were smiles beaming across everyone's faces as we achieved our goals and this was truly something to celebrate! It was a good way to end a very tough day.
Half time score: 15-4 to Netherlands
Final Score: 29-6 to Netherlands
Points scored by: Kennedy (1), Chelsea (1), Ned (1), Sam (1), Boris (2)