It was not a pleasant round of the press for Edwin de Graaf and Nick Olij. The coach and captain were both obviously disappointed after the elimination in the play-offs. In a match in which NAC deserved the victory, things went wrong in the last fifteen minutes. According to both, it was typical of the restless season.
The trainer could only blame his team for few things afterwards. “We did everything we could to get a win today. We were the better team and had plenty of opportunities. At some point we have to take a lot of risks because of the loss in Breda. When you see the goal against, that is typical for this season.”
Because a clumsy own goal ensured that the game was decided. Goalkeeper Nick Olij echoed the words of his trainer. “That first goal sums up our season exactly. In the end it didn’t work out. We can hardly blame ourselves today.”
“This will come in a while”
After another restless year, promotion never really happened. Although both gentlemen do not want to admit it. The defeat in The Hague was particularly hard on Edwin de Graaf. “This will come in a while. Mainly because of the way. I was really convinced that we could win here. Given the game image, that would have been right.”
But thinking back to the season, De Graaf admits that it has been an emotional roller coaster, also for him personally. “You start your first job as head coach. But players leave during the year, you get sick yourself, the club goes on sale and you lose in the first round of the play-offs. It was a restless and tough season.”
“Hopefully there will be more clarity soon”
The trainer has since recovered from a tumor and is waiting to see what the future will bring. The club will be definitively taken over one of these days, but he does not know whether De Graaf will also be a trainer next season. “We will see what the future brings. The club is satisfied but I have not heard anything concrete yet. Hopefully there will be more clarity soon.”
Who is clear about his future is Nick Olij. The goalkeeper indicates that he is going to leave. He won the prize for best goalkeeper in the Kitchen Champion Division last week and is going to take a step. Where to is not yet known.
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