Women’s EuroHockey U21 Championship preview – Belgium
Appearances: 10
Best performances: 2nd (2017, 2022)
Belgium’s Junior Red Panthers are looking to continue the rising journey of the country’s women’s pathway, one that has seen consistent success on both the European and world stages.
It follows back-to-back Junior World Cup bronze medals and top four finishes in three of the last four Euro U21 competitions. Valencia is the venue where they picked up their first medal at this level
For head coach Glenn Simpson – an ex-Kookaburra international with over 100 caps – it is something of a new look team with just five of the side from Chile last December in situ.
Chloé Delhalle and captain Emma Plets are among the most experienced players in the group and both already have experience with the senior Red Panthers with the latter also linking back to the 2023 Junior World Cup.
** 24 EuroHockey U21 Championship matches from Pitch 1 in Valencia will be broadcast live on www.eurohockeytv.org with an €8.99 event pass (Click the graphic for more information)
Agathe Favart is one to watch. Still one of the youngest members of the squad, the Waterloo Ducks forward has already shown an eye for goal at international level – she has seven goals in six U21 internationals.
Several players have already gained experience in the Euro Hockey League, underlining the high-level environments many have been exposed to despite their young age.
Among those are Fee Van Den Abeele (pictured), Alexine Matthysen and Romanie Verhaeghe, all of whom have benefited from European club competition experience.
Indeed, Van Den Abeele and Louise Van Hecke are both EHL bronze medalists with Gantoise, the Belgian champions who provide four players to the panel.
They will be without the injured Alexi Van Remortel, however, while the success of their programme has seen Lisa Moors, Perrine De Clerck and Famke Van Heel all move up to the senior panel for this summer’s schedule.
Goalkeeper Sterre Jammaers also brings valuable tournament pedigree after being part of Belgium’s Junior World Cup bronze-medal-winning group.
Off the field, the presence of Belgian hockey icon Jill Boon as assistant coach provides another valuable resource for the squad. One of the most celebrated players in Belgian hockey history, Boon brings a wealth of knowledge from both international and club competition.
| # | Name | Caps | Goals | Goals |
| 1 | Sterre Jammaers | 0 | 0 | Herakles |
| 5 | Chloé Delhalle | 17 | 3 | Waterloo Ducks |
| 7 | Lisl Denef | 0 | 0 | Leuven |
| 8 | Marguerite Verschuere | 0 | 0 | Racing club de Bruxelles |
| 10 | Fee Van den Abeele | 6 | 1 | Gantoise |
| 16 | Alexine Matthysen | 0 | 0 | Gantoise |
| 17 | Romanie Verhaeghe | 0 | 0 | Gantoise |
| 19 | Emma Plets | 17 | 0 | KHC Leuven |
| 21 | Viviane Dejonghe | 0 | 0 | Waterloo Ducks |
| 22 | Lily Damilot | 0 | 0 | Victory |
| 23 | Hélène Delva | 0 | 0 | Waterloo Ducks |
| 25 | Agathe Favart | 6 | 7 | Waterloo Ducks |
| 26 | Victoria Liessens | 0 | 0 | Antwerp |
| 30 | Louise Van Hecke | 6 | 1 | Gantoise |
| 33 | Lena Schoepp | 0 | 0 | Wellington |
| 37 | Bobby Boey | 0 | 0 | Waterloo Ducks |
| 44 | Maxine Bertram | 0 | 0 | Leuven |
| 45 | Fien Stockbroekx | 0 | 0 | Herakles |
| Jeroen Baart | Team Leader | |||
| Hiske Molenaar | Team Manager | |||
| Robin Geens | Stand-In Manager | |||
| Glenn Simpson | Head Coach | |||
| Jill Boon | Assistant Coach | |||
| Julie Guerman | Physiotherapist | |||
| Xavier Vandoorne | Physical Trainer | |||
| Lucas Simons | Video Technician | |||
