National cup

National Stadium
Spectators: 1028 (Terracing: 772, Seating: 236, VIP seats: 20) Yorrick Hekman fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 7th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Will Goldthorpe having to interfere. 9 minutes into the game, Adrian Nicholls was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. U21 England's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave U21 Netherlands the free kick. Adrian Nicholls hit a great freekick 9 minutes into the match. Will Goldthorpe made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Yorrick Hekman in the 10th minute of play. In the 13th minute, Yorrick Hekman ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Will Goldthorpe was frozen by the shot and now it was 0-1. An unexpectedly hard shot by Archie Greenwood in the 15th minute of play forced U21 Netherlands's goalkeeper Eddy Luirink to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. An unexpectedly hard shot by Marc van Nistelrooij in the 17th minute of play forced U21 England's goalkeeper Will Goldthorpe to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. In the 18th minute the ball was on its way in behind U21 England's goalkeeper Will Goldthorpe, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. Will Goldthorpe made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Gerrit Ebbinge in the 21st minute of play. The supporters of U21 England booed when U21 Netherlands was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 28 match minutes in a wonderful position. Yorrick Hekman didn't get a good kick on the ball. Owen Wilberforce kicked well hit freekick during the 31st minute of the match. In the 37th minute, Marc van Nistelrooij left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The U21 Netherlands fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 0-2. In the 42nd minute Gerrit Ebbinge shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Will Goldthorpe saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. A collision led to U21 Netherlands getting a freekick after 42 minutes play. Jan Raas hit a great ball. 45 minutes into the match, Gerrit Ebbinge had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Will Goldthorpe. U21 England's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Gerrit Ebbinge was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 0-3. The U21 England players were disheartened as they walked off the pitch after the first half. U21 Netherlands were winning 0-3.

The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Archie Greenwood stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. If Archie Greenwood had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 51st minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Jan Raas hit a great freekick 54 minutes into the match. U21 England made a substitution. Andrew Harrison replaced Garth Beck. Jan Raas hit a great freekick 55 minutes into the match. Eddy Luirink showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Archie Greenwood, who was totally free with the ball in the 56th minute. In the 57th minute Carlton Boothroyd shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Eddy Luirink saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. U21 Netherlands's Eddy Luirink played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Owen Wilberforce in the 60th minute of play. An unexpectedly hard shot by Owen Wilberforce in the 63rd minute of play forced U21 Netherlands's goalkeeper Eddy Luirink to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. If Gerrit Ebbinge had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 67th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. U21 England made a substitution. Leo Bean replaced Owen Wilberforce. U21 England's Cristiano Mbappè was substituted for Archie Greenwood. Will Goldthorpe showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Gerrit Ebbinge, who was totally free with the ball in the 70th minute. Yorrick Hekman could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 72nd minute of the match, but Will Goldthorpe made a huge save. Eddy Luirink took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Cristiano Mbappè, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Rik Clarijs in the 83rd managed to get into a good position. With a left leg Will Goldthorpe saved U21 England from getting behind. In the 85th minute Rik Clarijs shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Will Goldthorpe saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. U21 Netherlands made a substitution. Kevin Arnolds replaced Yorrick Hekman. After 88 played minutes U21 Netherlands got a freekick which was hit by Jan Raas. Eddy Luirink showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Cristiano Mbappè, who was totally free with the ball in the 89th minute. In the 90th minute Cristiano Mbappè shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Eddy Luirink saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Eddy Luirink showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Cristiano Mbappè in the 94th minute of the match. The referee blew the final whistle, and the away crowd roared, having watched U21 Netherlands eke out a victory against a very well matched opponent.