Orange start Pro League month with eight debutants

National coach Jeroen Delmée has called up eight debutants for the four Pro League matches that the Oranje Heren will play from June 7 to 12 in Eindhoven at the Oranje-Rood ground. Forwards Miles Bukkens (Pinoké), Duco Telgenkamp (Kampong) and Boris Burkhardt (Amsterdam), among others, will make their first appearance in the orange squad.

In Delmée’s 22-man team for the double with India and Australia goalkeeper Pirmin Blaak (132 international appearances), Joep de Mol (113) and Thijs van Dam (84) are the most experienced players. Also Seve van Ass (209 caps) was originally expected to be part of the group, but the HGC captain is not yet fit after his hamstring injury a few weeks ago. Delmée therefore added Jip Janssen to the selection.

Up to twelve players have four or less caps behind their name. Besides Bukkens, Telgenkamp and Burkhardt, Max de Bie, Sheldon Schouten, Timo Boers, Pepijn Reyenga and David Huussen can also make their first minutes in the orange team.

save players

Almost all internationals from Bloemendaal and Kampong are spared for the upcoming duels in Eindhoven. Delmée gives them the space to recharge physically and mentally after a grueling season, in which the Bloemendaal players also played three EHL matches between the pair. This means that Teun Beins, Floris Wortelboer, Maurits Visser, Jorrit Croon, Thierry Brinkman, Jasper Brinkman and Dennis Warmerdam (all Bloemendaal) and Lars Balk, Derck de Vilder, Terrance Pieters and Jonas de Geus (all Kampong) will not join until later in June. The Dutch will play the Pro League double against Germany and New Zealand at Wagener Stadium from June 24-28.

National coach Jeroen Delmée addresses his men after the final Pro League match of last season. Photo: William Verne

Jeroen, along with goalkeeper Derk Meijer, Tjep Hoedemakers, Thijs van Dam and Steijn van Heijningen, you have selected four Rotterdam players who have also played in the play-offs. Why are they part of the group?
Jeroen Delmée: “We deliberately wanted to let some players rest, but we didn’t want to build too small a core group either. In Rotterdam, Thijs and Steijn missed much of the second half of the competition through injury. They are eager and energetic and therefore different from most Bloemendaal and Kampong players. Playing the playoffs doesn’t automatically mean you’re not playing now. Suppose Orange-Rood reached the play-offs, then I would have called Joep de Mol, Tijmen Reyenga and Sheldon Schouten. They can play international matches at their own club. You don’t want to deprive them of something so special.

Forwards Miles Bukkens and Duco Telgenkamp are part of the match selection for the first time. Is it based on their good season at Pinoké and Kampong respectively?
“Sure, but we’ve had our sights on these guys for a long time. Now that we have to let some players breathe, it’s the perfect opportunity to see them at work in the big Orange. As we approach international matches against India and Australia, I wonder where they are and what will happen to them if we expose them to hockey at this level. After this Pro League block in Eindhoven, they will once again join the Dutch Juniors, who are preparing for the World Cup later this year.

Pinoké forward Miles Bukkens, already good for eighteen hits in all official games this season. Photo: William Verne

Do all the players of this selection also have a chance to play in the European Championship in Mönchengladbach this summer?
“Yes, everyone has a chance at the European Championship. Of course, the players who have been in the Orange squad for a year and a half have a better vision of a place in the selection, but the door is open. to everyone. That’s the big advantage of this Pro League month: we can fully test the players. If the boys do well and show that they belong, they have a chance. It’s that simple. ‘

How do you approach the busy month of June in the Pro League?
“The Pro League is the start of our preparation for the European Championship in August. Emotionally we have returned to the level of a year and a half ago, because now we are also entering the field with a renewed group of players. We are now at eighty percent, but halfway through the Pro League we should already be at one hundred percent, so for the newbies these Pro League games are a crash course in international hockey. we are going there to win, with a good dose of energy and courage.

The eight beginners in the spotlight

The selection of 22 Pro League players for Eindhoven (June 7-12)