The chainsaw challenges and the game does not convince – according to experts, Finland will start the weekend’s gold hunt from the back

The game of the Finnish national floorball team did not convince against Norway either. Finland goes to the weekend’s deciding games as a contender.

Finland’s challenges at the floorball World Championships continued on Tuesday, although it defeated Norway in its group final match with a score of 7–2 (1–0, 1–5, 0–2). There were already concerns before the match, when Ville Lastikka, Aaro Astala mixed Lauri Stenfors were not included in the lineup for unknown reasons.

Named for assembly Joonas Pylsy ended up not playing at all. Finland, which started with five defenders, received more bad news when Mikko Leikkanen had to leave the match before halftime.

In the game itself, Finland was very tight in the opening set. Norway, which had good chances to score, moved into the second set in the lead by Marius Pedersen by hitting

– The first set lacked the advertised relaxation and enjoyment, defender Janne Lamminen stated.

In the second set, however, Finland found relaxation. It was found somewhat unexpectedly during a period of underpower, when Finland Oskari Heikkilä and Justus Kainulainen littered the goal nets. Finland scored five goals in the second set and showed why it is the top country in floorball.

Finland had only 14 players available at the end. The head coach Petteri Nykky admitted that it made the game challenging.

– When the pairs of decks changed, the opening game was not quite right. Maybe there was a bit of arrogance too. In the first set, we allowed the opponent to make two passes.

According to Lamminen, several absences did not affect the start of the match.

– Of course, the chain relay creates a challenge, but on the other hand, we have been together for so long. We know each other, so you can’t go behind it, Lamminen referred to several absences.

Marius Pedersen gave Finland a shock treatment in the opening set.

Finland scored five goals in the second period.

Into the final tournament as an underdog

Finland was expected to make a big change in the Norway game after the loss to Switzerland on Sunday. Sports experts Perttu Kytöhonka mixed Toni Lötjönen however, they were not convinced by Finland’s presentation.

– There was no feeling that the level of the Switzerland game had been raised. Weak performance, Lötjönen summed up.

Finland will face either Germany or Canada in its quarter-final on Friday. A couple of days of rest, thinking about the likely medal games of the weekend, is like an order for Finland’s winged team.

– It is a challenging situation regarding the roster. We have to see how we can get the old man back from the sick one. It needs to improve a lot if we want to play on the weekend, Nykky saw.

If Finland and Sweden play their quarter-final match, they will meet each other in Saturday’s semi-finals. According to Kytöhonga, among the top countries, Sweden, Switzerland and the Czech Republic have so far been more convincing than Finland.

– Finland starts from the back of this group. Sweden has always had a very high ceiling. The Czech Republic was really strong in the second half against Sweden. We saw that Switzerland knows how to channel the support of the home crowd in the right way.

– For Finland, the status of the underdog can also suit, Kytöhonka added.

Nykky and Lammi were interviewed by Toni Lötjönen

Finland scored two goals in the final set.