Finland (11) v (0) Belgium

By Emily Day

FINLAND defeated Belgium 11-0 in a good-spirited match that saw the players dancing before the kick off and picking each other up with a hug each time someone fell.

Finland began the game in the offensive, taking several shots at goal which were more enthusiastic than accurate and fell wide.

But Finland was rewarded by their persistence with their first goal before the clock reached the one minute mark.

Their second goal came soon after, pelted from the confident boot of Finland’s Jani Luhtanen.

A lucky accident gave Finland their third goal, when a deflection off Belgian goalkeeper Sven hit the back of Finland’s Carl Enkenberg and bounced straight back into the net.

Belgium received two penalty shots but both attempts were stifled by the Finnish keeper.

Star striker Anne Hirasvuopio made her mark on the scoreboard after five minutes of play to bring the score to 4-0.

Finnish Karl-Bengt Henriksson decided it was his turn to shine and netted Finland their fifth goal.

The last minute of the first half saw a barrage of shots coming at the Belgian keeper, whose dogged keeping kept the scoreboard static and earned him the warm admiration of the crowd.

The second half saw Finland stronger than ever, with competent ball skills and controlled strikes at goal ensuring their domination of the game.

Henriksson netted a goal after 30 seconds, closely followed by Enkenberg to bring the tally to 7-0.

Belgian player Marc showed great determination in tackling and bringing the ball towards the goal, but the second half action took place mostly in front of the Finnish goal with deft passing between the Scandinavians resulting in four more goals to give them an assured 11-0 victory.

Photos: Photoworx