Netherlands:

No Felice Albers, no Laura Nunnink, no Emma Reijnen, no Jip Dicke. Injuries cast a shadow over the Dutch national team’s European Championship squad, which nevertheless will take on fourteen Olympic champions from Paris in Mönchengladbach. ‘Despite the absence of several players, we are obviously still traveling to Germany with a top team,’ stressed national coach Raoul Ehren.

Of course, there is still plenty of quality on the field at the EC. ‘Last week we played our first practice match after the vacations, against Belgium. We won that convincingly 6-1. We came out of the break well. The ladies are completely fresh again. With this selection we cannot settle for anything less than gold’, emphasized Ehren, who nevertheless has to miss a number of players.

Even before the start of the Pro League campaign in June, the Dutch national team’s selection began to thin out cautiously. Laura Nunnink tore the cruciate ligament of her right knee in the NK final. During the Pro League block, the Dutch again suffered some setbacks. In the international game against Spain, Jip Dicke was injured. Shortly thereafter, Emma Reijnen was also sidelined , as she tore her anterior cruciate ligament during training.

WSP118392 - Netherlands: - No Felice Albers, no Laura Nunnink, no Emma Reijnen, no Jip Dicke. Injuries cast a shadow over the Dutch national team's European Championship squad, which nevertheless will take on fourteen Olympic champions from Paris in Mönchengladbach. 'Despite the absence of several players, we are obviously still traveling to Germany with a top team,' stressed national coach Raoul Ehren. Of course, there is still plenty of quality on the field at the EC. 'Last week we played our first practice match after the vacations, against Belgium. We won that convincingly 6-1. We came out of the break well. The ladies are completely fresh again. With this selection we cannot settle for anything less than gold', emphasized Ehren, who nevertheless has to miss a number of players.

Besides Laura Nunnink, Felice Albers is also missing from the European Championships. Photo: WorldSportPics

We were not convinced Rosa could handle five games in eight days after her injury. Raoul Ehren on the absence of Rosa Fernig

After the two international matches against Belgium, at the end of June in Antwerp, Felice Albers also dropped out, Ehren says. ‘Felice turned out not to be fit enough to play the EC. For us that’s really a loss, because she was in great form during the Pro League in Amsterdam. There she showed in every match that she was back at her top level. That is precisely why it is such a shame that we have to miss her in Mönchengladbach.’

Also in the case of Rosa Fernig, the effects of an injury put a line through her EK. She was injured at the end of the Pro League block in Amsterdam, forcing her to miss the two internationals in Antwerp. Earlier this season, another injury also sidelined Fernig for much of the second half of the season. Since our restart after the vacations, Rosa has been training with us again, even fully last week. Medically, she is now fit. But we were not convinced she could handle five games in eight days already,’ Ehren explained his decision not to include Fernig in the European Championship squad.

Rosa Fernig WV - Netherlands: - No Felice Albers, no Laura Nunnink, no Emma Reijnen, no Jip Dicke. Injuries cast a shadow over the Dutch national team's European Championship squad, which nevertheless will take on fourteen Olympic champions from Paris in Mönchengladbach. 'Despite the absence of several players, we are obviously still traveling to Germany with a top team,' stressed national coach Raoul Ehren. Of course, there is still plenty of quality on the field at the EC. 'Last week we played our first practice match after the vacations, against Belgium. We won that convincingly 6-1. We came out of the break well. The ladies are completely fresh again. With this selection we cannot settle for anything less than gold', emphasized Ehren, who nevertheless has to miss a number of players.

National coach Raoul Ehren was not convinced that Rosa Fernig could handle five games in eight days already after her injury. Photo: Willem Vernes

For six weeks Marijn Veen was also out of the running

To top it off, Marijn Veen also ended up in the saddle in mid-June. For six weeks she was also out of the running, due to an injury to her hand. It wasn’t until Monday that she trained again for the first time. Nevertheless, in the meantime, Veen was able to continue her running work, keeping her in top condition, a windfall for Ehren.

The long list of injuries did make the pool a lot thinner. Noor van den Nieuwenhof and Trijntje Beljaars, who had joined the young squad in early May, were therefore recalled to the training group by Ehren after the Pro League matches in Amsterdam. At the end of June, they sat in the stands during the two international matches in Antwerp. Ehren: ‘They became eligible for a spot in the European Championship squad again in recent weeks.’

The high number of injured players automatically reduced the number of knots Ehren had to cut. At the back, Pam van der Laan and Danique van der Veerdonk won the competition from Noor van den Nieuwenhof, who was designated as a reserve, as was Eline Jansen. Up front, Fay van der Elst forced a spot in the EC selection, while Trijntje Beljaars dropped out. All other choices were basically no longer a surprise.

WV2024 WV1R4687 - Netherlands: - No Felice Albers, no Laura Nunnink, no Emma Reijnen, no Jip Dicke. Injuries cast a shadow over the Dutch national team's European Championship squad, which nevertheless will take on fourteen Olympic champions from Paris in Mönchengladbach. 'Despite the absence of several players, we are obviously still traveling to Germany with a top team,' stressed national coach Raoul Ehren. Of course, there is still plenty of quality on the field at the EC. 'Last week we played our first practice match after the vacations, against Belgium. We won that convincingly 6-1. We came out of the break well. The ladies are completely fresh again. With this selection we cannot settle for anything less than gold', emphasized Ehren, who nevertheless has to miss a number of players.

The recovered Marleen Jochems returns to the Orange selection at the EC. Photo: Willem Vernes

Return of Marleen Jochems

Amid all the injury worries, there was also good news: the return of Marleen Jochems. Ehren: ‘She entered a special trajectory, where we consciously chose not to let her play in the Pro League. This allowed her to work towards full fitness in peace. After the vacations, Marleen fully joined the group. That went surprisingly smoothly: she was soon at the level we hoped for.’

The only decision Ehren has not yet revealed is how he will divide playing time between goalkeepers Anne Veenendaal and Josine Koning. ‘They both did a fantastic job during the Pro League. They are both going to make minutes at the EC. But how exactly, I’m keeping that to myself for now.’

by Hockey.nl