Fiery start sees Netherlands clinch fifth place with clear win over Germany

Netherlands finished off the 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship with their eighth win in nine matches, sealing the fifth place in the final standings, with a 30:25 win over Germany.

PLACEMENT MATCH 5/6
Germany vs Netherlands 26:30 (7:16)

Just like in the quarter-final match against Sweden, when they needed 14 minutes and seven seconds to score their first goal, Germany struggled mightily in the start of the match against the Netherlands, with everything unravelling in attack, as the Dutch side opened their account early and used a 5:0 run to take control of the match.

By the time centre back Alina Grijseels scored Germany’s first goal, with 12 minutes and 37 seconds gone in the match, the Dutch side were already in full control. With a meagre 27% shooting efficiency, Germany had little chance to turn anything around, as mistakes piled up and the Netherlands duly took advantage.

Right wing Angela Malestein, the Netherlands’ top scorer in the competition, shined once again, with four goals in the first 24 minutes, while goalkeeper Yara Ten Holte capped off a truly impressive appearance at Denmark/Norway/Sweden 2023, with yet another outstanding performance, saving nine of the first 13 shots she faced, for a 69% saving efficiency. 

On the back on those performances, the Netherlands cruised to a nine-goal lead at the end of the first half, 16:7, which eventually proved to be unassailable, with Per Johansson’s side firing from all cylinders at the end of the 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship, to end the competition on a high, with two wins in a row.

There was nothing Germany could do to prevent another loss, in spite of the Dutch side having only 14 players on the sheet, three of which were goalkeepers. With Ten Holte - the hummel Player of the Match - shining between the posts, as she finished the match with 18 saves for a 46% saving efficiency, Netherlands cruised to a clear 30:25 win, as Germany failed to get anything going in attack, after their silenced start.

Netherlands sealed their fifth top-5 finish in the history of the IHF Women’s World Championship with this win, finishing Denmark/Norway/Sweden 2023 with eight wins and only one loss – the one against Norway in the quarter-finals – which derailed their bid for a medal. The Dutch side also returned to the top-5 for the first time since winning the trophy in 2019.

Despite losing three of their last four matches, Germany ended up on the sixth place, their best finish since France 2007, when they secured the bronze medal.

hummel Player of the Match: Yara Ten Holte (Netherlands)