Emmen saw off Volendam 5-3 in the fifth round of the Eerste Divisie at home on Friday evening. The hosts moved up to fifth place after a match decided by moments rather than the flow of play. By then, the visitors had already shown they could score, but Emmen's finishing proved sharper.
Sybrand Veldhuis opened the scoring in the 35th minute before Daan Huisman pulled one back just before half-time. Freddy Quispel then stepped in, netting in the 62nd minute and adding another in the 73rd. Veldhuis doubled his tally in the 59th minute, and that pattern of back-and-forth continued until the end.
Volendam responded through Reuven Niemeijer in the 69th minute and Henk Veerman in the 77th, but Michael Breij's penalty in the 80th minute sealed the result. The match saw five yellow cards between it, with Quispel, Hojabrpour, Bukala, Dedelhomme and Deme all cautioned. Substitutions came thick and fast after the hour mark, with six changes across the two sides.
And here's the thing: both teams finished with exactly 50 per cent possession, yet Emmen mustered 95 attacks to Volendam's 81. The hosts registered 17 shots — ten on target — while the visitors managed eight, seven of which found the wayward side of the net. Emmen won six corners to two, and their goalkeeper made four saves against five from the Volendam stopper.
Emmen now sit fifth on nine points from four games, while Volendam remain tenth on six. The hosts had lost their opening fixture 4-0 at VVV Venlo but have since beaten Roda, Jong Ajax, Jong AZ and Almere City. Volendam's run of results has been less consistent, with victories over Dordrecht, OSS and MVV Maastricht offset by defeats to Ajax, Jong PSV and Emmen.
