125 Years of the GAA Celebrated in Den Haag

In the men’s tournament there were two groups with group one containing Den Haag A, Belgium B and Amsterdam, and group two containing Den Haag B, Belgium A and Luxembourg. Thoughout the group stages there were no major upsets, with Amsterdam and Den Haag A progressing from group one and Belgium A and Luxembourg progressing from group 2 with Den Haag the only team progressing by winning each of their group games. The first semi final pitched Den Haag against old rivals Luxembourg in a game that began slowly but sparked to life when Paul Gribben smashed a quick free into the back of the net to take the Luxembourg team by surprise. Luxembourg stuck with Den Haag for most of the game aided by a smashing solo goal by Luxembourg midfielder Eoin Sullivan, but two quick goals by Paul Gavin and Danny Craven closed the game out for Den Haag. In the second semi between Amsterdam looked to upset the odds against the reigning European champions Belgium in a tight and thrilling game. Belgium took the lead early in the game with Amsterdam wasting several chances in front of the posts, put persistence and determination from Amsterdam prevailed when an early second half goal sent them on their way to victory.

This set the scene for a rare derby final between Amsterdam and Den Haag. The game had a scrappy start with the soaring temperatures throughout the day and nerves clearly taking their toll on both sides. Two quick and lucky goals from Sean Simpson proved to be the early breakthrough for Den Haag and from this point onwards Amsterdam struggled to get back into the game. Strong performances from Den Haag captain Declan Bonner and debut forward Danny Craven closed out the game to see Den Haag take their second tournament win in a row.

 

Later in the evening the player of the tournament award went to Amsterdam half back Michael Kelly who battled throughout the days for Amsterdam side that have shown their potential for the season ahead.