Erik-Jan Brinkman’s sports moment: a messianic goal in hockey

The pirouettes of former Ajax player Anthony are loved and hated. I definitely belong to the first group. Sport is entertainment for me. Compilations on YouTube of Ronaldinho, Messi and Ødegaard (recommended) I can therefore watch breathlessly.Athletes who display their skills gracefully and creatively and understand that sports enthusiasts come to the stadium or sit in front of the TV to be entertained.

These kinds of ‘sports artists’ quickly have an advantage with me. This also applies to Jorrit Croon since 13 November 2022. The 24-year-old from Amsterdam doesn’t score often, but when he manages to find the net, it almost always beauties.

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At NH Sport we pay little attention to hockey. An important reason is that we do not have the competition rights and that other media such as hockey.nl and Ziggo have embraced this sport in recent years. But I think this hit by Jorrit deserves text and explanation. And the rest of the editors agree with that.

Box of tricks

After a few phone calls to Bloemendaal I get Jorrit’s number and he enthusiastically shows that he would like a report on this hit. A few days later I meet the cheerful hockey player on the Amstelveld in the center of Amsterdam.

There, on a small stone football square, he mimics his masterly hit. A casual passerby throws the ball a number of times and on the uneven vowels Jorrit keeps the ball high five times and hits it neatly in the top left corner every time. That the technician has the ball on a string with his stick, he proves a little later when he opens his box of tricks in front of the camera.

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Still, not everyone is impressed circus croon. A drunken bum (seen in his yellow fluorescent jacket after eight seconds in the video above) emphatically seeks confrontation with us. Apparently not served by camera and hockey stick. Aggressively and intimidatingly, he repeatedly disrupts our recordings and yells something unintelligible.

Law enforcement

An answer with the convex side of the hockey stick would be a quick and easy solution, but we think a phone call to the police is a better idea. Moments later, two officers address the drunkard and he leaves with his tail between his legs. Then we can continue our mission.

Discussion

According to Jorrit, what makes the goal extra special are the many discussions afterwards. “I’m glad this goal caused some commotion.” A frequently heard comment afterwards is ‘dangerous game’. On the field shortly after the goal, Jorrit was not very aware of this and opponent Den Bosch actually hardly protested either. However, a discussion erupts on the social channels. “That makes the goal even more beautiful”, says Jorrit. “The enthusiast will always approve of this goal and the critic wondered how such a goal could be defended.”

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Since this phenomenal goal by Jorrit Croon, I no longer only surf YouTube to compilations by Maradona and Zidane, but also to highlights on the hockey field. And soon I find another Messianic hit by Jorrit. Check out the video above for this. So remember his name: Jorrit Croon.

Erik Jan Brinkman