2008 WUC Floorball: Finals
November 9th, 2008
Women's Gold Medal Game SUI vs. SWE
Women's Gold Medal Game: Swedish Roll over Brave Swiss...
With the final group match finishing in a draw between these two teams, everybody expected another close encounter with maybe the possibility of overtime or a very tight score. It was not to be as the Swedish girls came out in full force and managed to win by a big margin of 9-3. Maybe luck wasn't on the Swiss side as they deserved a more respectable scoreline but it was evident that the Swedish team was mentally, technically and physically better than their opponents. In fact, Team Sweden came out with their guns ablaze and had already taken a two goal lead by the first six minutes. The Swiss then tried to fight back with several good chances while the Swedish replied with their own but that was the final score for the first period. The second period started with the Swedish team increasing their lead to 3-0 but Team Swtizerland managed to get one of their own. From then on it was all Sweden as they scored four goals in a row with no reply from the Swiss. They got one goal back though as the result at the end of the second period was 7-2. The Swiss came out determined to give their utmost in the third period and they managed to find the back of the net seven minutes from time. Team Sweden though wanted to make sure of their win and cement their superiority ... and they did so by adding another two goals and thus the final scoreline stood at Sweden 9 Switzerland 3 with an impressive Nina Helas Wellin getting five goals to her name for Team Sweden. Sweden fully deserved their win as they played superbly throughout the tournament. Their play was characterized by very patient build ups and quick counterattacks. Well done to the winners of the first ever women's category in the FISU World University Floorball Championships. The Swiss also deserve credit for the silver medal they achieved. They were very concentrated throughout the tournament and were determined to give it their best try. Hop Suisse! The host team Finland took bronze. They were really unlucky not to make it to the final after good matches against Switzerland and Sweden, drawing them both and surely the home crowd would have loved to see them play in the final at Seinäjoki Sports Hall. Meanwhile, Japan although not on par when it comes to level of play and tactical knowledge, they gained the respect of everybody with their determination, courage and heart shown in each match, continously supporting each other and playing in a great atmosphere of team spirit. Sometimes its not just about winning only, but also about participating. And without doubt, these teams have given the spectators entertainment and exciting matches by participating in this tournament in a great spirit of fair play.
Team Finland Gold Medallist of the Men's Tournament
Host Finland Wins Men's Gold
In the golden final a strong playing Team Finland, cheered by a full house beat the Czechs 9 to 3, keeping the gold in Finland. 1,135 spectarors waited for a very eventful match between the two finallist teams. On Saturday Czech Republic had won againts Finland 6-4 with Martin Zozulak`s two goals so maybe this was one of the key reasons why Finland was extremely ready for the final. After the first period Finland was leading 3-0 and Czech Republic almost beaten. When Pavel Brus missed his penalty shot at time 32.07, the match was clinched. Finland darkened Czech Republic`s stars Martin Zozulak and Milan Tomasik with aggressive defence so Zozulak couldn`t show his explosive one timers and Tomasik his extremely skillfull stickhandling. The other way round, Finland showed good compinations, especially Sami Koski, Petri Väänänen and Mikko Helanen found each other time after time. The final lock was goalkeeper (and men`s tournament`s MVP) "Jarno Wonder" with 41 saves. The athmosphere among the spectators was brilliant when the final buzzer rang and Finland`s men cheered after overwhelming 9-3-win!
Finland had a Father`s Day Morning Warm-up to Take Women's Bronze
Yesterday when the two teams met there was no question about the winner. Finland had total control over the game and they continued the same way today. Japan found it almost impossible to get the ball out of their defending zone. The biggest question concerning this bronze medal match was how many goals Finland would score. In the first period Finland managed to take a 6-0 lead as Kaarina Salomaa already fired a hat-trick. The level of Japan`s play was far behind all the other teams in the tournament. After all you have to give credit to their cheerfulness and fighting spirit. In spite of the big losses they never gave up and the solidarity and respect they showed is what these student games are all about. On the other side Finland had forgotten the disappointment of dropping out of the final to put up an entertaining show for the audience. They were on top of their game scoring one goal after another. The second period saw Salomaa scoring another three goals to take Finland in to a 13-0 lead. The last period was nothing but a formality as Finland continued their celebration scoring six more goals to win 19-0.
Today's Results
Men's Tournament Bronze Medal Game: SWE vs. LAT: 10-6 Gold Medal Game: CZE vs. FIN: 3-9 Women's Tournament Bronze Medal Game: FIN vs. JPN: 19-0 Gold Medal Game: SWE vs. SUI: 9-3 More info can be found on the OC website at www.wucfloorball2008.com.
Final Ranking
Men's Tournament 1. FIN 2. CZE 3. SWE 4. LAT 5. JPN 6. HUN Women's Tournament 1. SWE 2. SUI 3. FIN 4. JPN
