ZZVV continues to convert after a simple victory over uninspired Stadskanaal

Nothing pointed to an easy evening for ZZVV in Stadskanaal. The team of coach Hans Slender was missing quite a few players, while the Kanaalsters started the match with confidence after a strong performance a week earlier against HZVV and an excellent midweek practice match against VKW.

But it soon turned out that the team of Stadskanaal coach Marcel de Groot had a complete off day. Within fifteen minutes it was 3-0 for the visitors and the match was decided. A lot went wrong at Stadskanaal.

The game looked perfunctory, the simplest passes did not arrive and there was no pace. Also because most players preferred to slow down the game with the ball at their feet rather than continue playing immediately.

While Slender had expected a difficult evening, the match turned out completely differently. “Very surprising. There was a very young team on the field tonight, who quickly decided the match. At the end you could see that it was becoming more difficult for us conditionally, but Stadskanaal was not able to create much at that time.”

Kevin Nijmeijer made a mistake with the first goal. The central defender easily ran away from the ball, after which Vincent Huls passed hard and low from the right. Janou van Veen then shot the ball into the intersection. With the second and third goal, a deep ball through the center of ZZVV was enough to put a player alone in front of Stadskanaal keeper Royce Geerlings.

Maurice Tinholt scored first, after which Xander Adema ended the match with a nice lob. Little or nothing worked at Stadskanaal. Sten Vos’ attempt was perhaps typical. Played by substitute Dennis Vijfschaft, the right winger in a promising position did not hit the ball with his instep, but with his shin, after which the ball bounced wide.

It was only in the final minute of the first half that ZZVV goalkeeper Twan de Weerd had to take action for the first time. The goalkeeper plucked a shot from Roy Tolner from the top corner. De Groot brought on Dean Becker and Peter van Nieff for Vos and Maik Tolner at half-time, but could just as easily have substituted five others.

In any case, Stadskanaal put more energy into the match after the break, although that did not lead to many opportunities. The otherwise invisible Jeffrey Bakker shot wide again, while Nijmeijer forced goalkeeper De Weerd to act.

While Stadskanaal will enjoy a free weekend next week when the competition starts, ZZVV has to go straight to work at FC Horst in Ermelo. Slender: “We are in an unknown competition. We often play far behind Zwolle. We don’t know those teams.”

The reverse also applies. “They don’t know us either. Hert seems to be a strong class, with teams that want to move up. We’ll see, maybe we can surprise them.”