ADO Den Haag has one point left from the home game against FC Dordrecht. Darije Kalezic’s team did not get further than a 2-2 draw against the Sheepheads in the cracker, despite the home team once again managing to overcome a 0-2 deficit.
The people of The Hague played an important match on Monday, March 11, in the battle for that still coveted promotion spot. In the Bingoal Stadium, the club from Hofstad, the current number four in the competition, received; FC Dordrecht. With a difference of only two points in favor of ADO Den Haag, the home team was determined to achieve a good result. Head coach Darije Kalezic took office with one change compared to last Friday’s away match against Roda JC (2-2). Koudossou was allowed to start this time instead of Van Hintum.
ADO Den Haag had a difficult opening phase and even had to concede a goal within fifteen minutes. Sebaoui had a nice move and managed to pass Marsman from almost the back line by sliding the ball into the far corner: 0-1. The home team looked for the combination several times, but was sloppy with the ball, which meant that they could not actually create any significant opportunities. FC Dordrecht took advantage of this and therefore increasingly entered the goal area in The Hague.
After half an hour of play, the score was more likely to be 0-2 than a possible equalizer. For ADO Den Haag it was mainly important to regain control of the match. Unfortunately, this did not work before the second goal was scored. A defensive error on the side of The Hague allowed captain Suray to lash out. Initially, Marsman was able to save the ball, but the rebound was still a hit. For a moment it seemed like the final blow could be delivered when Sebaoui was once again given a lot of space to shoot. Fortunately for the home team, the attacker did this too hastily, causing his shot to disappear high over Marsman’s goal.
For a long time it looked like ADO Den Haag would have a very difficult job ahead of them in the second half, until just before half-time a deflected corner from Van Mieghem ended up on Derijck’s head. The central defender managed to serve Veerman with his head, who put Schalk in a scoring position with a very careful pass. The attacker took advantage of his chance and shot the ball home very hard: 1-2. The scoreboard suddenly looked a bit more positive just before the half-time signal.
With Van Wolfgang kicking off the second half, Kalezic made one change to the original starting eleven. Vigen had remained in the locker room after halftime. ADO Den Haag was determined to do better in the second half than in the first 45 minutes. Van Mieghem put his words into action when he saw goalkeeper Plogmann standing far in front of his goal and decided to shoot from about 40 meters. A fantastic goal from the experienced attacker ensured that ADO Den Haag was able to level the score again: 2-2!
In contrast to the first half, it was ADO Den Haag that had the upper hand and entered the enemy target area several times. The home team came close to taking the lead for the first time after 72 after Van Mieghem saw his shot hit the aluminum from a free kick. ADO Den Haag brought more competition to the match and so Esajas was allowed to enter the field with fresh energy just before the entrance to the Hague Quarter, captain Surmeli made way for this.
Yet ADO Den Haag escaped unscathed when Osundina shot just wide, after suddenly being one-on-one with Marsman. Less than a minute later, Schalk had made it 3-2, but he saw Plogmann block his shot. With less than ten minutes left on the clock, Kalezic decided to give the attack an extra boost by making an attacking substitution. Sellouki made his appearance, allowing Waem to watch the final phase from the bench. Everything was done to keep those three important points in-house. On the other hand, it seemed as if the Sheepheads were satisfied with a draw and wanted to finish the match. Veerman saw his shot well saved by Plogmann in the last minute of official playing time, leaving ADO Den Haag with only one point in this match: 2-2.
Another important match awaits next Friday. ADO Den Haag travels to Velsen-Zuid where SC Telstar is the next opponent.
Characteristics ADO The Hague – FC Dordrecht 2-2 (1-2)
Score progression: 14. Sebaoui 0-1, 32. Suray 0-2, 41. Schalk 1-2, 54. Van Mieghem 2-2
Spectators: 6564
Referee: Hensgens
Line-up ADO The Hague: Martian; Ché, Derijck, Waem (82. Sellouki), Koudossou (87. Absalem); Surmeli © (75. Esajas), Vlak, Vigen (46. Van Wolfgang); Van Mieghem, Veerman, Schalk
Line-up FC Dordrecht: Plogmann; Bronkhorst (46. Seydoux), Tsoungui, Kluivert, Hilton; Receiver, Suray, ‘t Zand (67. Shein); Mbayo (66. Osundina), Kriwak, Sebaoui
Author: Jill Vereijdt
Photography: Angelo Blankespoor