“Demonstration of power” in the final
Men’s hockey team regains European Championship title with B team
The selection is a mixed bag, the stars are missing – and yet the German men's hockey team is the measure of all things at the European Indoor Championships. Poland has no chance in the final. For the German Hockey Association, it is the continuation of a successful period.
National hockey coach Rein van Eijk cheered on the sidelines, his players hugged each other happily. “Yes, we are European champions. That was a fantastic achievement,” said the Dutch coach after the 17th European title for the German indoor specialists and another medal for the recently successful German Hockey Association. “That was a demonstration of power. The team put in an outstanding performance and promoted indoor hockey,” said DHB sports director Martin Schultze after the 5:2 victory in the final against Poland at the tournament in Leuven, Belgium.
After Henrik Mertgens scored the winning goal in the last minute in the semi-final thriller against Belgium (5:4) the day before, the motley German selection, without the current senior national team players, put in a confident performance in the final against surprise finalists Poland. The Germans dominated the match from the start, with captain Paul Doesch and Elian Mazkour each scoring two goals. Mertgens, the top German goalscorer with eight goals, added another.
The atmosphere at the indoor spectacle with lots of goals and varied games was great. “Incredible atmosphere. It was super loud, everyone was really into it, it was a lot of fun,” said national player Constantin Staib.
At the start of the Olympic year, the DHB can look back on 15 successful months, with the men's World Cup title win in January 2023 as the highlight. The women also won the last European Indoor Championship and came third at the home tournament in Mönchengladbach. The U21 juniors became world champions in 2023. Both German teams confidently secured their Olympic ticket for the Summer Games in Paris by winning the respective qualifying tournaments. Next week, the women's hockey team can then defend their European Championship title at the tournament in Berlin.
