Dutch women’s coach Kai de Jager says his side face a huge challenge in their opening two EuroHockey U21 Championship group games as they look to win back the title after a seven-year gap.
In a relative drought for the Netherlands, they missed out on the final in 2022 and had to settle for silver in 2019 but they since went on to win the Junior World Cup in Chile last December.
And it is from that star-studded panel that de Jager will draw from with 11 of the main panelists and two reserves forming the bulk of their line-up.
“I think the general level is good and high,” de Jager said to hockey.nl. “It is up to us to maintain our dominant position in women’s hockey.
“In Spain and Belgium, we will face two direct opponents in our first and second match. Then we will know immediately where we stand.”
The five new additions are Phileine Hazen, Iris de Kemp, Julie Roovers, Kaat Walhof and Babs Reijnen – who will play with her older sister and captain Emma.
The elder Reijnen will be assisted by Noor van den Nieuwenhof, who will assist Reijnen in her role.
“They will do well together,” the coach says before adding their penalty corner options are also in order. “With Trijntje Beljaars, Imke Verstraeten and Van den Nieuwenhof we have girls who also regularly drag in the Premier League.
“And Sam Luttmer does it as standard in the Promotion Class. Our variations are also in order.”
In terms of top performers, there are many with pedigree. Trijntje Beljaars was one of the stars of the Jong Oranje side in Chile with eight goals in six games. At club level, she was handed her club debut by former German international Tina Bachmann at the age of 14 with Oranje-Rood and scored her first Hoofdklasse goal at 16.
There is also a glut of Euro Hockey League winners; Mea de Vries (AH&BC Amsterdam – 2022); Babs and Emma Reijnen (Den Bosch, 2023), Noa Muller and Alessia Norbiato (AH&BC Amsterdam – 2022 & 2024).
Best performances: Champions – 10 times (1977, 1981, 1984, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2017)
