Group A:
Frans Otten 2-1 Van Herk (8-3) | Almere 1-2 ‘Meersquash (4-7)
Group B :
Utrecht 2-1 Houtrust (7-4) | Drachten 1-2 Apeldorn (5-6)
Down to the nitty-gritty
Round 8 of the Dutch men’s PSL had no real upsets and everything went as predicted, but now the numbers get really interesting.
Winning a Group grants access to the playoff semi-final, saving a team from a two legged quarter-final and strengthen the warchest for the semis and the final. Numbers #2 and #3 in the Group will advance to the playoff quarter finals.
In Group 1 the situation is very interesting. After their win over Ridderkerk yesterday Frans Otten Stadium is leading the poule with a margin of just 2 points. Frans Otten however has only one match remaining against Squash Almere, which should give them 12 points.
If that is the case, Rotterdam need to score 14 points in two matches to win the poule. They are however playing ‘Meersquash and Ridderkerk who are both entangled in a battle for third place. On top of that ‘Meersquash can line up Paul Coll and Nicolas Mueller and Ridderkerk has the ability to bring Mohamed El Shorbagy and Patrick Rooney.
The grande finale in this Group is going to very spicey and it is impossible to predict the outcome.
In Group 2 Twente has unofficially finished top, since Houtrust seemingly started saving budget for the playoffs. Drachten is down and out, but Utrecht and Apledoorn will definitely fight till the bitter end for the third place. And eventhough Utrecht is behind by 9 points, they threw a very effective first punch yesterday by beating Houtrust. They also know that Apeldoorn is up against Twente in the last match, which is an enormous hurdle. But best chance for both teams to knock the other out is when they go head to head in round 9.
So exciting times in both poules. The Dutch PSL setup is really proving itself to be a spectacular system.
Preview
In Group 1 Victoria Rotterdam has already secured their sport in the playoffs and they are well on their way to win the Group and advance directly to semi-finals. Frans Otten Stadium only needs 4 points to qualify, and they have two matches left to make sure that happens with the last match being against Squash Almere who haven’t been a competitive adversary this year. There is even a small chance they could overtake Victoria for the top spot, though that is considered to be highly unlikely.
The big battle for the remaining spot will be between ‘Meersquash and Ridderkerk. There is only 5 points between them, with Ridderkerk having played one match less. ‘Meersquash will probably have an easy task today against Squash Almere and take the full 12 points. Ridderkerk however faces Frans Otten Stadium, where they will face Youssef Soliman, Juan Vargas and Andrew ‘The Wizard’ Widdison. Ridderkerk’s line-up is also not too shabby with Lucas Serme, Valentin Rapp and Rene Mijs, but will it be enough to stop Frans Otten ?
In Group 2 Twente and Houtrust have earned their spot in the playoffs and now it’s between Drachten, Apeldoorn and Utrecht to make out who will claim the third place. In this battle Drachten is probably too far behind, but Apeldoorn and Utrecht have very similar remaining schedule including one head to head on 13th of March, so that promises to be a very spectacular ending to the group.
