RKC Waalwijk has done very well in the fight against relegation. The team of coach Henk Fraser beat direct competitor Vitesse 3-1 in a sold-out Mandemakers Stadium. The gap with the Arnhem team has now increased to five points, giving the Waalwijk team a little more breathing space. “But we are certainly not safe yet, anything can happen,” said striker David Min.
It was called the match of the year by many supporters. At stake was sixteenth place in the rankings, or the place just above the relegation zone. The Mandemakers Stadium was filled to the last seat. The match started with a bang with minutes of fireworks outside the stadium.
Opportunities RKC Waalwijk
The home team was the most dangerous on the field in the first half hour. Striker David Min was threatening after fifteen minutes of play and tested goalkeeper Eloy Room with a hard shot. Five minutes later, Chris Lokesa came dangerously in front of the Arnhem goal, but again no goal.
Nice goal
The goal was scored after half an hour. Right back Julian Lelieveld was given a lot of space by his direct opponent and gave a tailor-made cross for Min. The tall attacker came high and nodded neatly in: 1-0.
After the opening goal, it was Vitesse that hunted for the equalizer. They had two big chances before half time, but Etienne Vaessen proved his worth once again. The goalkeeper also played his two hundredth game in the shirt of RKC Waalwijk.
Gift
The score was 1-1 after about ten minutes of play in the second half. The American Paxten Aaronson steamed up on the right and outpaced Vaessen. Ten minutes later a similar situation, but now the ball went just wide.
However, the Arnhem storm subsided when the home team came out of nowhere to score 2-1. Vitesse defender Ramon Hendriks made a mistake and gave a great chance to Reuven Niemeijer. The midfielder had the supporters cheering for the second time this evening.
In the final phase the game waved back and forth. It remained a tight squeeze for RKC Waalwijk, but the lead was not relinquished. In fact, when goalkeeper Room went forward with a corner in the final minute, substitute Michiel Kramer scored from the counter to make it 3-1. And with that, RKC Waalwijk took three very welcome points.
Lots of pressure
Goal scorer Min was of course very satisfied with the win afterwards. “Everyone at the club noticed that it was a very important match. There was also more pressure, I felt that. However, in the match everyone just did what they had to do and gave everything.”
Next Saturday the people from Brabant will visit Excelsior. With a victory over the Rotterdam team, RKC Waalwijk will climb one spot. That fifteenth place means direct enforcement at the end of the season. “We have to continue this way and get points. A win next week is again very important.”