Kevin van Veen has redeemed himself from the hateful zero. The 32-year-old FC Groningen striker, who promised 30 goals when he arrived this summer, scored his first goals of the season in the Kitchen Champion Division. Against his old club TOP Oss, he helped Dick Lukkien’s team to a 0-2 win with two hits.
Van Veen, who had come over from Motherwell in Scotland, had not yet been in Groningen’s service. In his first three matches, in which the relegated player already lost five points, the attacker was still dry after his 25 goals last season in the Scottish league. But precisely against TOP Oss, the club for which he scored 16 times in the 2014-2015 season, he broke the spell.
Just before half-time of the game that was temporarily halted due to disturbances in the stands, Van Veen headed in on a pass from Leandro Bacuna: 0-1. Halfway through the second half, he immediately made his second when he was able to hit from close range after a cross from Noma Emeran.
FC Emmen crashed hard
The two other relegated players from last season had a tough evening. FC Emmen went on their own field for shooting against FC Dordrecht, which quickly benefited from a red card for Maikel Kieftenbeld. Via Joey de Bie and Adrian Segecic it became 0-2. And after Joey Konings scored the tying goal, Mathis Suray immediately scored again: 1-3.
FC Dordrecht also finished with ten men. Rocco Robert Shein got his second yellow in the 57th minute. A clumsy own goal by Mike te Wierik, who passed goalkeeper Jan Hoekstra with a header, made Emmen’s catch-up race hopeless: 1-4. When celebrating that goal, supporters of Dordrecht threw beer, so that this match also had to be temporarily stopped. After the restart, Konings made it 2-4.
The still undefeated SC Cambuur disappointed Helmond Sport, which took the lead shortly after the break via Martijn Kaars. Milan Smit seemed to save a point for the Leeuwarders with his fourth goal of the season, but Kaars struck again in the last minute: 2-1.
Leader Roda JC lost expensive points in the away match at Jong FC Utrecht. At Sportpark Zoudenbalch, the Limburgers suffered an extremely unnecessary 1-0 defeat. Well into injury time, Jesse van der Haar, the son of former striker Hans van der Haar, struck after a blunder by Roda JC goalkeeper Koen Bucker. Due to the defeat, Roda now has to share first place with Young PSV, which won 1-2 at FC Den Bosch.
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