The Men’s World Floorball Championships will be held in Malmö, Sweden, from 7 to 15. december shows all matches in Finland on its channels.
The broadcast of Finland’s quarter-final against Norway starts on Friday the 13th at 8 p.m.
12–2, 4–1, 6–1, 7–0, 6–1, 5–1, 11–2. That’s a row of the Finnish men’s national floorball team’s quarterfinal results at the World Championships since 2010.
Finland has always managed to clear the first playoffs quite clearly. The same is expected to continue today as well, when Norway will meet in Malmö from 20:10.
Norway managed to squeeze a 4-4 draw against Switzerland in the first group, but in the first elimination game, Denmark barely fell 3-2.
– There are good players there who play in the Swedish league. They had a bit of a challenge against Denmark, but they have skill. We get good resistance from them, in the Finnish coaching team, especially the one responsible for the goalkeepers Jarno Miracle states.
– Certainly they defend quite deep and protect their own goal. We need to get a rhythm in our ball game. Let’s take the game and create a threat through that.
For those playing their first full World Cup tournament To Jere Niemelä Norway is a new opponent.
Against Latvia and Slovakia, Finland, as the pre-favorite, was not yet able to complete 60 minutes, but the Indians defender from Lappeenranta has confidence in Finland’s level of fundamentals.
– We know what it takes if we want to win the game. If we do things properly with high quality, then yes, we should continue with that. You can expect a quintessential Finland.
The start went by squeezing the stick
The Finnish players have stated in several words that Saturday’s opening game against Latvia came too quickly for the team that left Helsinki a week ago on Thursday.
Battle toughness and diligence were not at the required level, and Latvia managed to make the match tight.
Niemelä, 24, was also in trouble in the opening match, but as the tournament progressed, the performances have improved and evened out.
– Personally, and I can say for a couple of others, there was such a squeezing of the racket and a little excitement. Now we have found our own energy and our own thing, Niemelä believes.
– When you get good performances right away, it at least makes my own playing easier.
The defender, who performs with speed and energy on the field, played the previous three seasons in Turku Palloseura, whose success has been based on a very controlled game with the ball and a certain kind of freezing of the opponents.
In Turku, the surprising and tough challenger of the opponents was able to fulfill himself in a certain framework, and in three seasons he accumulated almost 100 points.
He sees his own style of play as a good fit for the Finnish team.
– It’s a bit like dancing on a tightrope, when it goes over and when it doesn’t. In the national team, especially during this project, I have tried to find balance and the right kind of risk-taking, Niemelä admits.
– It has been worked on with the coaches, and I have personally made progress on it. I’ve been able to bring it on league pitches as well.
The goalkeepers have excelled
Tuesday’s historic 5-2 win against Sweden was a key success for Finland, and Sweden fell into the threatening images that have been painted around the pre-favorite.
The race host was impatient and got frustrated when there was no result.
Finland’s patience and calmness with the ball were at a high level, especially in the latter two sets.
For the coaching staff, the performance brought a certain peace with the weekend in mind.
– I already told my wife at home to Mariwhen we left for the trip, that it’s a joke, when you have a good feeling about this effort of ours and the team, Ihme, who saved the penalty shot that decided the World Cup gold against Sweden in 2016, reveals.
– I think we have gone in the right direction, and of course positive games improve self-confidence and the idea of what kind of game we need to play in order to get through the rest of the week.
In the area of responsibility of the miracle between the posts, there has been a special reason for satisfaction, because both Oskari Fälden that debuted at World Cup level against Slovakia Markus Laakso have played excellently.
Only six balls have sunk into the own net in three matches.
Basically, Fälden is the number one defender, but Laakso will probably be in goal again against Norway.
– The guys’ body language exudes self-confidence, and it’s really nice to see that. It has been really easy to go with them so far, praises Ihme.
During the tournament, you can no longer reinvent the wheel, and with the goalkeepers, in daily life, we only try to remind you of the things that have already been done during the period.
– We have prepared quite well and looked through our main opponents. We know how they attack and what kind of guys are there against them.
– We have also been able to talk a lot in the EFT tournaments in the fall. Now it’s more of a mental thing, reminding yourself of certain opponents and things.
“Life’s biggest dreams”
Ihme knows that in order to win the world championship, Finland has to get the button success on the weekend.
– I don’t know of any World Championship gold that came with just basic dusting. Against Sweden we had the game plan, we improved within the game and got the feeling even stronger for us.
– These are tight games where things can go either way, but there is a lot of faith in the fact that if we can execute our own game, we can win everything in this tournament.
Ihme has already won the World Cup gold eight years ago as a player, but Niemelä is still looking for his first.
The dream is three wins away.
– I’ve had the idea since I was a child that I want to be in the men’s national team one day and raise the ball. One of life’s biggest dreams, Niemelä states.