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Finland never dropped their guard
Team Russia had no chance against co-favourite Finland . They fought bravely but were swept away in a 1-16 defeat.
Finland started its program in the World Floorball Championships 2004 on the second day. After the 20-1 victory of the Czech Republic over Germany and Norway 's 16-1 walk over Austria , another high result was expected when the Finns dressed up against Russia . The Finns didn't go easy on themself. They started the game with only two lines which helped the quality of the game immensely. The two lines consisted of the best what Finnish floorball currently can present: Kohonen, Öhman, Hintikka, Järvi and so on…
In the first minutes, the team of Coach Pasi Tilander showed the Russians where the match was going to lead. Neimo, Öhman and Hintikka tested the Russian goalkeeper Pronyakov from good positions. It took nine minutes until the ball was in the Russian net for the first time. 20-year-old defender Tatu Vaananen scored the first goal.
An excellent floorball delicacy could be admired after ten minutes. After a penalty was called against Russian player Drushinskij, the Finns proved their skills in the first power play situation of the game. Hannes Ohman from Swedish champion Balrog shot three times on the Russian net, but only hit the crossbar, the goalkeeper or even missed the net. Still, there were plenty of other occasions to practice in goal scoring. Two goals within 12 seconds by Hintikka and Öhman followed in the first period to give the Finns a secure lead.
With six seconds left in the first period, the Russians took advantage of a mistake in the Finnish defensive play and scored their only goal of the game. They fought bravely during the whole game. The Finnish stars were just better and gave their opponents an unsolvable task. The longer the game was going, the more the Russian's power tank was lacking energy. The Finns scored nine of their goals in the last period. They managed superbly to let the Russians run into the trap of their clever play.
Markus Neimo, who scored three goals against Russia , compared the first game of Finland at this WFC with a practice. “It was important for us to get used to the floor and the atmosphere here in Kloten”. He's well aware that the opponents will get better in the forthcoming of the WFC. “We tried our best and in my opinion played very good. We have to keep this attitude. Switzerland is the main opponent in our group. I'm looking forward to this game,” he said.
Previous to the showdown on Thursday against Switzerland , the team of Coach Pasi Tilander will meet up with Latvia and Denmark . With the easiness they were showing in the Russia game, it shouldn't be a problem to beat outsiders Latvia and Denmark . Both teams will mainly focus on the defensive part of the game. Tilander's decision to play with only two lines (as opposed to the Swiss in the game against Latvia ) helped to keep a high intensity in the game. It will also help to keep the competition high for places in these two lines. Great players like Janne Tähkä or Tero Karppanen were only sitting on the Finnish bench during the game, which shows the quality of the Finnish roster.
Interview with Markus Neimo form team Finland
Can you describe the feeling after winning 16-1 in the first game in WFC 2004?
We gave our best and I think we managed to play quite well. Of course, Russia wasn't that strong. They fought bravely, though. It was a good opportunity to getting used to the floor and the atmosphere here in Kloten.
Will it be easy to adjust to the level of the better nations?
The teams will get better, that's for sure. We have to stay focused. Today, we played as good as we could. We have to keep this attitude. It was like a practice game and we could build up self confidence.
What is needed to adjust to the niveau of the better nations such as Sweden and Switzerland ?
The teams will get better, that's for sure. We have to stay focused. Today, we played as well as we could. We have to keep this attitude. It was like a practice game and we could build up self confidence.
What is your comment on the home team Switzerland ?
I haven't seen them play. But I heard a lot of them. I think they play pretty well. I'm looking forward to playing against them on Thursday. Switzerland is the main opponent in our group. This game will be decisive.
5. WFC, A-Division, Group 2
Finland - Russia 16:1 (3:1, 4:0, 9:0)
Schluefweg, Kloten
SR Nordahl/Rehnfeldt (Sweden)
700 Spectators
Scorers: 9. Väänänen (Lehtonen) 1:0. 27. Hintikka (Järvi) 2:0. 17. Öhmann (Kohonen) 3:0. 20. Tyapkov (Drushininskij) 3:1. 21. Öhman (Jussila) 4:1. 29. Kuronen
(Kohonen) 5:1. 32. Öhman (Hintikka) 6:1. 39. Kuronen (Kohonen) 7:1. 42. Ketonen (Kapanen) 8:1. 48. Neimo (Väänänen) 9:1. 49. Neimo (Hintikka) 10:1. 50. Järvi (Neimo) 11:1. 51. Kapanen (Ketonen) 12:1. 52. Neimo (Tiitu) 13:1. 54. Hintikka (Järvi) 14:1. 59. Lehtonen (Neimo) 15:1. 60. Järvi (Lehtonen) 16:1.
Remarks: 30. Kohonen misses penalty shot
Penalties:
Finland 3 x 2"
Russia 3 x 2"
