Finland preview: Best-of-the rest again?
As we move closer and closer to the IPCH European Championships 2024, Claus Vestergaard previews each team in order of the World Ranking List. In this edition, he shares his insights on the Finnish national team.
To put it bluntly, at this point the Finns are a largely known commodity as a team just outside the very top of the IPCH hierarchy. Perennial best-of-the-rest if you will.
Lineups centered around the creativity of one or both of Ella-Riikka Itsomätsä and Jesse Mursu alongside powerful long range shooters like Samuel Ojala and Kasper Vuorinen have been around for a while, and low-pointers, Anni Kyroläinen, Petri Mätikainen and T-sticks Atso and Jasmi Ahonen are solid and disciplined defenders.
Ultimately, though, the Finnish lineup seems a little stale, lacking the ‘juice’ and individual brilliance that is generally needed to make it far in international tournaments at this level.
But underestimate the Finns at your own peril. They seem to be always hanging around, nipping at the heels of the top five (The Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Denmark and Switzerland). Emerging star Vuorinen represents the main source of upside - if he or others make a leap, it may super-charge the rest of the roster. The Finns make very few mistakes, and don’t beat themselves. If you let up even a little bit, they will pounce and make what seemed a simple game into a very difficult one indeed.
Germany learned this lesson the hard way in their opening game of the 2022 world cup. Limited by Covid-19 related absences, the Germans were not at 100% strength. And sure enough, the Finns pounced and won 6-3 with Vuorinen scoring five. This paved the way for a surprise appearance in the semi-finals. After an unceremonious exit at the hands of the Dutch, they came very close to stealing the bronze medals from the Swiss hosts, in a 3-4 thriller.
For outside observers, the Finns will likely serve as a convenient benchmark for us to measure the rest against: If any of the top teams are off their game, Suomi will be right there to pick up the pieces. Residing in group B is a good start, as neither Denmark nor Italy seem unbeatable on paper. All it takes in one surprise win, and the path to the semis is once again wide open.