The Dutch men will draw on the experience of 14 Olympic gold medalists following Jeroen Delmée’s selection for the EuroHockey Championship in Mönchengladbach (August 8–17) with striker Olivier Hortensius the bolt from the blue.
Hortensius, who has only two caps to his name, will play his first major tournament having made his debut in the Pro League in June against Argentina.
In goal, Delmée doesn’t want to choose between Derk Meijer and Maurits Visser yet and confirmed both goalkeepers will get playing time at the European Championship.
“The differences between Derk Meijer and Maurits Visser are minimal so I can’t and don’t want to express a preference now. We have two strong goalkeepers who can both prove their worth at a title tournament.
“That will provide valuable information for us in the run-up to next year’s World Cup on home soil. We’ll make a definitive choice then,” Delmée explained in the press release announcing the squad.
Terrance Pieters will play his first title tournament since the 2023 European Championship in Mönchengladbach. Tijmen Reyenga and Steijn van Heijningen, who played as reserves in Paris, are also among the first eighteen names.
In terms of changes to the Olympic panel, Duco Telgenkamp had already withdrawn from the panel while the tournament came too soon for Jonas de Geus who also took a break after the Olympics.
The midfielder struggled with a knee problem toward the end of the club season which lingered into the Pro League campaign in the summer. The retired Pirmin Blaak and Seve van Ass are the other two departures.
For the time-being, Delmée has also confirmed goalkeeper Hidde Brink, Luke Dommershuijzen, Pepijn van der Heijden, Guus Jansen, and Lucas Veen will wait in the wings in case of injury in the final lead-up to the event.
Delmée added: “After the Paris Olympics, several new players stepped up and joined the Dutch national team. They came very close to winning their first title, but are still just a little bit short. It’s always frustrating to have to disappoint players.
“I believe we’ll travel to Germany with an experienced and balanced team, ready to play with a recognisable, energetic style, as people have come to expect from us in recent years.”
Netherlands men: Lars Balk (SV Kampong), Koen Bijen (Den Bosch), Justen Blok (Rotterdam), Thierry Brinkman (Den Bosch), Jorrit Croon (Bloemendaal), Thijs van Dam (Rotterdam), Tjep Hoedemakers (Rotterdam), Olivier Hortensius (Rotterdam), Jip Janssen (SV Kampong), Derk Meijer (GK, Rotterdam), Floris Middendorp (AH&BC Amsterdam), Joep de Mol (Oranje-Rood), Terrance Pieters (SV Kampong), Tijmen Reyenga (Oranje-Rood), Derck de Vilder (SV Kampong), Maurits Visser (GK, Bloemendaal), Floris Wortelboer (Bloemendaal), Steijn van Heijningen (Rotterdam)
