Seven former EHL medalists battle for EHL Men’s glory

The ABN AMRO EHL Men’s FINAL8 takes on the now traditional quarter-final knock-out format with eight of Europe’s best sides battling it out for glory at HC ’s-Hertogenbosch.

It is a line-up packed with two former champions, four former GRAND FINALISTS while seven of the sides have won medals in the world’s best club competition.

It begins on Thursday evening when 2016 winners SV Kampong face 2022 bronze medalists Surbiton (17.15 CET) before six-time champions Bloemendaal meet 2011 runners-up Club de Campo (19.30 CET).

On Friday, it’s the Belgian derby between Royal Léopold against Gantoise (15.30 CET) before Old Georgians – bronze winners last year – take on HC Rotterdam (17.45 CET).

Here’s a closer look at the upcoming rivalries:

Match 01: SV Kampong v Surbiton – Thursday, 17.15 CET

The 2016 champions are looking to land their second title in the EHL having come agonisingly close last year when they finished as runners-up to Pinoké with just a single goal settling the tie.

They won the Dutch championship last season with a 4-3 win over HC Rotterdam in the final and they compete this season with a relatively settled side

The side has plenty of international talent with Lars Balk and Jip Janssen holding sway in defence, Jonas de Geus driving midfield while Duco Telgenkamp and Terrance Pieters give great potency to their attacking lines.

They do have a doubt over goalkeeper David Harte – who has announced he will move on from Kampong this summer – but Estiaan Kriek has been in fine form since stepping in.

Their Hoofdklasse form sees them in fourth place with three rounds to go, holding a three-point advantage over Oranje-Rood and Rotterdam.

KO16 hosts Surbiton delighted their home fans as they brought EHL hockey to England for the first time since 2012 and picked up a FINAL8 ticket into the bargain.

They did so by coming from behind to defeat Waterloo Ducks 4-2 and then held off the challenge of Wimbledon 3-2. Those wins assured England of two teams in the FINAL8 Men for the first time since 2013.

The London club have subsequently qualified for their domestic semi-finals with one round of the third phase of the English season still to be played.

This year’s panel features Paris Olympians Gareth Furlong, Conor Williamson, Tim Nurse, Nick Park, David Goodfield and goalkeeper James Mazarelo who was a reserve with the GB side.

Match 02: HC Bloemendaal v Club de Campo – Thursday, 19.30 CET

Bloemendaal meet Club de Campo for the third time in the EHL with the Spanish side hoping to get their first win over the Dutch giants.

The sparrows produced a blistering first half of the season but have stuttered a little since with three league defeats after the winter break to reduce their Hoofdklasse lead to one-point.

Their panel has quite a few changes from last season when Thierry Brinkman and Arthur van Doren moved on while Nathan Ephraums came into the panel. England’s Zach Wallace, Spanish star Marc Miralles and Dutch internationals Maurits Visser, Teun Beins, Jorrit Croon and Dennis Warmerdam give them a range of threats.

The Spanish champions are hoping they can get back into medal contention for the first time in 14 years having taken silver in 2011.

They had been on a great run of form since Christmas, winning the Copa Del Rey a few weeks ago but a 2-1 setback in the league to Junior FC last weekend ended a run of five successive league wins. They sit third in the league behind Atlètic Terrassa and Real Club de Polo.

Theirs is a side packed with Spanish international know-how with Rafael Vilallonga a star talent in midfield; Quique Gonzalez is always lively; Rafa Revila is a strong goalkeeper and Alvaro Portugal will also be key.

Match 03: Royal Léopold v Gantoise – Friday, 15.30 CET

Royal Léopold will hope they can emulate their November 4-1 win over Gantoise in the Belgian league as the sides face off for the second successive season in the EHL.

Gantoise, though, are riding high in their domestic competition with a seven-point lead overall. The national champions bolstered their side with EHL winner Alexander Hendrickx last summer and he has already scored over 30 times in his new colours.

Along with Maico Casella and Ignacio Nepote, he has been a vital addition to the side that won the Belgian title last spring.

Léo got off to a slow start in the league but have since won through the EHL KO16 phase and then became the first Belgian side to win the EuroHockey Indoor Club Cup.

The core is solid with talent and experience in each line with the likes of Gauthier Boccard, Elliot van Strydonck, Dimitri Cuvelier, Nicolas Poncelet, Gaspard Baumgarten and Jean-Baptiste Forgues carrying huge experience.

And they added Nelson Onana and José Basterra to the forward line beside ace striker Tom Boon to give them serious firepower.

Match 04: Old Georgians v HC Rotterdam – Friday, 17.45 CET

The ever-rising force on the English scene, Old Georgians are looking to build further on their legend following their breakthrough EHL bronze a year ago at the Wagener Stadium.

Since then, they won the English title once more and then added the EuroHockey Indoor Club Trophy in Budapest, sending them to the top tier on the boards in 2026. It continues to be a side based around a huge wealth of experience with the evergreen Ashley Jackson masterminding things as head coach.

They have also been strengthened this season by the likes of David Ames (Holcombe), Ian Sloan, (Wimbledon), David Condon and Phil Roper (Holcombe) as well as South African international Thabang Modise.

It adds to a panel which already laden with know-how with GB and England all-time top scorer Sam Ward, James Albery Irish captain Kyle Marshall, ex-England goalkeeper George Pinner, Chris Griffiths, Dan Shingles, Henry Weir and Scottish goal machine Alan Forsyth.

They take on a Rotterdam side who are hoping to bid an emotional farewell to EHL’s record goalscorer Jeroen Hertzberger who will depart from the first team this summer after 22 seasons.

His final seconds equaliser against Hamburger Polo Club was the moment of the KO16 and will live long in the memory.

Their side has a wealth of Olympic gold medalists in their panel. Speedster Thijs van Dam, defender Justen Blok, Tjep Hoedemakers, Stijn van Heijnegen and goalkeeper Derk Meijer all took to the Paris podium in the Netherlands’ thrilling run to glory.

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