The amateurs of Quick Boys are the sensation of the current edition of the KNVB Cup. After the Katwijkers previously eliminated the Eredivisie players Almere City FC and Fortuna Sittard, the team of coach Thomas Duivenvoorden was also too strong for sc Heerenveen. The game ended in a 3-2 win for the home team after extra time.
This makes Katwijk the second amateur club in the last eight in the cup tournament after Noordwijk. Previously, AZ, PSV, Go Ahead Eagles, FC Utrecht, Feyenoord and Heracles Almelo also qualified for the quarter-finals. The draw is Friday at 5 p.m.
The match had to be stopped after a minute by referee Alex Bos after fireworks set off outside the stadium created a smoke screen on the field. The delay did not last long. The match resumed after more than five minutes.
The first chance was for Ravelino Junte, who failed to pass Heerenveen goalkeeper Mickey van der Hart from close range. Quick Boys took the lead in the 37th minute. Neville Ogidi Nwankwo headed home from a corner kick by Jesse Reinders. It was no surprise that the opening goal came on that side. Heerenveen, the team of coach Robin van Persie, did not have a single shot on target until half-time.
After the break, Heerenveen seemed to have put things right. Ilias Sebaoui shot the ball into the corner past goalkeeper Lars Jansen from the edge of the penalty area: 1-1. Fifteen minutes before the end, the Frisian team took the lead. Ion Nicolaescu headed home from a cross from Alireza Jahanbakhsh. Nothing seemed to be wrong until a foul by substitute goalkeeper Andries Noppert on Lukas Hamann earned the home club a penalty. That seemed to be punished too severely, but Milan Zonneveld was able to score the 2-2 and help his team to extra time.
Levi van Duijn headed past the hesitant goalkeeper Noppert and not much later the celebrations broke out in Katwijk. (AP)
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