Pat's Football Blog: 2020

Monday, December 14, 2020

FOOTBALL RALLIES ROUND TO HELP THE ELDERLY AND VULNERABLE IN ARTSAKH

The past couple of months have seen a conflict break out in the breakaway republic of Artsakh (better known as Nagorno-Karabakh), nestled in the southern Caucasus Mountains between Armenia and Azerbaijan. An Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic in the days of the USSR, surrounded by Azerbaijan but mostly populated by people of Armenian stock, it broke away from Azerbaijan at the beginning of January 1992 following an independence referendum (which was boycotted by local Azerbaijanis).

Since then, of course, two conflicts between Artsakh, Armenia and Azerbaijan have followed, with the second ending last month with Azerbaijan regaining just about all of the territory outside Artsakh it lost during the first war, which ended in May 1994 following a ceasefire. The ins and outs of the two "Nagorno-Karabakh Wars" are already being discussed and argued over elsewhere; there is no need to go over them here.

During the second conflict, Artsakh's capital, Stepanakert, came under daily attack from Azeri artillery and aircraft. As the city slowly began to empty during the latter stages of the conflict, it became clear that the elderly and vulnerable, as in every war ever known to man, were suffering greatly, despite the efforts of NGOs such as Kooyrigs. The fact that the Corona virus, was, and remains rampant in the southern reaches of the Caucasus region as a whole, only exacerbated the problems experienced by those who remained.

It was then that a group of football fans and players came together to form Football For Artsakh, better known via social media as Footy4Artsakh (and named as such hereafter), a small organisation dedicated to raising money to aid the elderly and vulnerable in Stepanakert. Many of those involved in Footy4Artsakh have an emotional bond with the nation and its capital, and this is unsurprising, given that they attended last year's CONIFA European Football Cup, which was held in Artsakh, in one capacity or another.

In a statement, released early last month, they referred to the affection and care shown to them during their stay in Artsakh, and said that they, "as part of the global football community, want to give back to the hosts, Nagorno-Karabakh. We celebrated together and now we must also be together for these hard times."

The statement, released on 5 November, and signed by CONIFA and WUFA member associations, amongst others, is provided in full below.

FOOTY4ARTSAKH STATEMENT

"A deadly war is raging in the Southern Caucasus since 27 September 2020. The small unrecognised Republic of Artsakh, also known under its former name Nagorno-Karabakh, and its 150000 inhabitants have been under attack for more than a month now. An estimated 6000 lives have been lost and over 90000 Karabakhtsi are taking refuge in Armenia. The citizens that stayed behind in the war-zone are often the elderly who [are unable to evacuate to Armenia]. They have been spending their days and nights in bomb-shelters or basements for weeks now.

"As all local shops are currently closed, the humanitarian situation is getting worse by the day.It is up to individuals and small civil organisations like Kooyrigs, who distribute supplies, to bring relief during times of war. Kooyrigs are more than humanitarian fighters in a war-zone that many call home - they are our allies in showing that football still has the massive power of solidarity. That's why we are collecting funds to help them on their mission to help the civilians of Nagorno-Karabakh.

"Many of us were heavily involved in a football tournament [the CONIFA European Football Cup] organised in Nagorno-Karabakh just last [year]. We, as part of the global football community, want to give back to the hosts, Nagorno-Karabakh.

"We celebrated together and now we must also be together for these hard times. We stand in solidarity with Nagorno-Karabakh and every single civilian who cheered us or our brothers and sisters last summer.

"This crowdfunder is for all of you. While we use our global football community to raise awareness and co-ordinate this call, we don't donate to a football team or player here - but to civilians in danger. This cause should concern everyone, globally.

"Thank you for your role in fighting a humanitarian disaster in the making with your contribution. Please spread the word, about this campaign and the horrible war that is already being forgotten."

SIGNATORIES

ORGANISATIONS

Barawa Football Association; Chagos Islands Football Association; International Football Surrey; Football Federation of the Republic of South Ossetia; Matabeleland Football Confederacy; Football Association of Panjab; Pohnpei Soccer Association; Seleção Paulista; Yorkshire International Football Association; Midfield Generals

INDIVIDUALS

Sascha Düerkop; Jens Jockel; Pat. McGuinness; Liam Potter; Séamus Travers; Paul Watson; Noah Wheelock

Albumin, part of a consignment of medicine recently delivered by Kooyrigs to Stepanakert (Photo courtesy of Kooyrigs)

Footy4Artsakh raised almost €1000 via a football-shirt auction which was held last month, and donated the money to Kooyrigs, a female-run Armenian NGO which distributed food, water and blankets to many of those who were left behind in Stepanakert and who were forced to hide in cellars and bomb-shelters. The operation was suspended when the city was almost completely evacuated last month, but, now that Stepanakert is starting to fill up again, slowly but surely, the assistance given by organisations such as Kooyrigs is needed more than ever, due in no small part to the onset of winter.

Mariam Avagyan, one of Kooyrigs’ directors, gave a detailed account to Pat's Football Blog this evening of the work the organisation had done during the conflict, saying that they had organised relief operations in various locations throughout Artsakh, including Stepanakert, Berdzor, Kovsakan and Qarvachar, to name but four.

"During the war, we were regularly shipping several tonnes of food to Stepanakert. While people from Stepanakert were slowly fleeing [the city], people from the nearby villages were gathering in Stepanakert as it had better bunker infrastructure. We regularly shipped food for all those people throughout the war. We were in touch with the Municipality of Stapanakert throughout. They were telling us how many people there were there and how much food they needed. Then, our team would [deliver the food] and make sure that the people got it. We also send 20 tonnes of flour, salt, yeast and oil to bake [enough] bread for one month for all of the people in Stepanakert."

"Regarding the situation now, conditions are very tough, especially for old and vulnerable people. They barely have electricity - it's often gone for 7-8 hours, and it's very cold there. There is no [gas supply],....because all the pipes have been damaged. The internet connection is on and off. One person contacted us from Stepanakert today saying that [the people still living in the city] need food and very basic necessities. A very harsh winter is upon the people of Artsakh."

Avagyan said that Kooyrigs will be delivering aid to Stepanakert in the coming week, and gave a quick run-down of what has been delivered so far, and said that more of the same will be delivered:

"1: Food to Stepanakert: As I mentioned, during the war we constantly sent food to Stepanakert - rice, pasta, beans, fresh vegetables, 20 tonnes of flour, salt, oil, and yeast (enough to bake bread for everyone sheltering in Stepanakert for a month), canned meat, and other fresh and non-perishables. As people of Stepanakert and nearby villages were sheltering in bunkers (children doing schoolwork in bunkers, even women giving birth in bunkers), they had no way of going and getting food on their own. The stores and markets were destroyed.

"2: Medication to Stepanakert and Goris hospitals: We were in direct touch with the Stepanakert and Goris hospitals and delivered medication they asked for. Much of it was blood-loss medication [Albumin] that was life-saving for the wounded civilians as well as soldiers. Other medication sent to people in and from Artsakh included Argosulfan (used for treating burns) diabetes medication, Colchicine, etc.

"3: Project Mayreeg (support for pregnant women): When delivering winter boots, we noticed many pregnant women did not have warm clothing, food, or access to Doctors. We started a project where we provide pregnant women a box of necessary items 1 month post-partum (baby bottle, diapers, nipple pads, etc), as well as help with finding doctors, appointment assistantship, and medication/vitamins. In our experience, this group was the most vulnerable as most of them had lost either their husbands, brothers, or fathers. We currently have 131 pregnant women from and in Artsakh who are receiving aid.

"4: Support to individual families: Because some families in Artsakh (as well as those who fled Artsakh) were completely isolated, had no transportation, clothes, or shelter, we provided food bags that last 2 months, warm clothing (blankets, winter boots, etc), and medication. This is extremely important because winters are brutal in Armenia and Artsakh, yet some people fled wearing flip-flops and pyjamas. [We will be delivering more ] blankets and winter boots for women and children. There are almost no men left in Stepanakert.

Avagyan thanked those who have donated to Footy4Artsakh, adding, simply: "Your donations literally saved lives."

The Footy4Artsakh campaign has gone rather quiet over the past couple of weeks, but with Christmas and the New Year approaching, the work still goes on in Stepanakert and other parts of Artsakh, mostly unknown and unheralded. The elderly and vulnerable, those who are unable to fend for themselves, still need the support and succour of others. Footy4Artsakh is a non-partisan effort where all monies raised go to those most in need, and there are many of them. Whatever you can give, however little, will go a long way and will be gratefully received.

The global footballing community has shown that it can come together to make grand gestures. It can also surely come together to make a small one, too, one which will make a big difference to hundreds, maybe thousands of people in a place ignored and unheard of by many.

To donate to Footy4Artsakh via PayPal, kindly copy and paste the link below:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=PVYKJNMW3M3QL&Z3JncnB0=

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: Many thanks to Mariam Avagyan, director of Kooyrigs, for her contribution to the above article (and her patience).

Thursday, December 10, 2020

THE PAT'S FOOTBALL BLOG BLOGGING AWARDS

Ten years ago last month, Pat's Football Blog first saw the light of day. A lot has happened in that time. Not much here, admittedly, but in the weird and occasionally world of social media, and not least of all in that tiny corner of social media saved for football blogger. Ten years is a long time in blogging, it would appear; for many and varied reasons, most of the blogs around when PFB was created no longer exist.

But, some are still around in a social media environment full of bells and whistles, podcasts and vlogs, many of which feature (groups of) individuals with little original to say, but who charge monthly subscriptions to fans of particular clubs, and who will pompously come down heavily on anyone who dares go against their opinion. I should know. I've been on the receiving end more than once. Some of those at the forefront of this new media were once bloggers, too, you know.

A number of years ago, the Football Blogging Awards were born, something to reward individuals writing blogs of quality. In the intervening years, bloggers have been pretty much cast aside in favour of podcasters, vloggers and "content creators", whatever they are.

It is time for bona-fide bloggers to fight back, I say. Now, I'm far from being the best blogger the world (or, probably, even my street) has ever created, nor would I ever claim to be. Compared to some bloggers who continue to write, I don't have many followers, and I'm comfortable with that. But, I feel sorry for those bloggers who write articles of substance but are left out in the cold, struggling to make their voices heard, so to speak.

So, to a little idea which has been on my mind for some time: why hasn't anybody created an all-new set of blogging awards for those who, above all, want to write? Well, welcome to the Pat's Football Blog Blogging Awards, a one-off event with no physical awards or trophies, but more a chance for bloggers to become acquainted with each others' work, a chance for them to find new audiences (and vice-versa), to showcase their work, plus, of course, the extremely dubious kudos of winning a Pat's Football Blog Blogging Award. (And, I'm always interested in reading new, original stories.)

I sat down and tried to work out some categories in my own, inimitably and admittedly unprofessional, manner, and the below list is what I've come up with.

Sunday, November 22, 2020

HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL IN ZAMBIA

In a world beset by problems, many of which are currently being caused by the Corona virus, life goes on as best it can, though for a great many people living in poverty in various locations across the globe, the virus only exacerbates their daily grind. One such place is the southern Zambian city of Livingstone, situated just a couple of miles from the Zimbabwean border and the world-famous Victoria Falls. Despite the fact that the Victoria Falls are on the city's doorstep, many of the city's 143000 people live perilously close to, if not well under, the poverty line.

However, a number of NGOs are operating in Zambia's Southern Province, of which Livingstone is the capital, one of which is New Hope Waves, a Zambian-registered non-profit organisation which is doing its best to raise some of Livingstone's poorest inhabitants out of poverty, and their spirits, too, with football playing a role in the latter.

The man behind the organisation is 37-year-old Auldridge Chibbwalu, a social worker trained in Developmental Studies, both locally and abroad, and who has created and run a number of community programmes aimed principally at children, young people and their wider family-circles. According to Chibbwalu, New Hope Waves "is working to empower the local communities with skills, knowledge and opportunities to improve their livelihood, health, education and protecting their environment."

But what of the organisation itself, and its name? Chibbwalu: "The name New Hope Waves comes from the desire to create “New Hope”, and “Waves” comes from momentum (water movement) aimed at the vulnerable communities which are characterized by poverty, illiteracy, disease and which need to [obtain] the skills, knowledge and opportunities to empower themselves to [live] with dignity."

New Hope Waves has been as good as its word right from the start, and works with all age groups to not only ensure that school-age youngsters receive a proper education, but that the elderly are assisted. Auldridge: "In 2015, we decided to register this movement as an NGO (non-profit organization) in Zambia, then started working with schools to assign some volunteers who would teach mainly in community schools, train the kids in football activities and also work with [a local] old people's home..We have even partnered with other international organizations to engage young people in fine arts, digital storytelling, prevention of gender based violence, inter-cultural exchange activities and an environmental care programme.

"After I acquired the necessary education and training, I had some opportunities to travel and work for a number of non-profit organizations both locally and internationally. Then, I was inspired to come up with activities in the community to keep children and young people involved. Later, I started some football and life skills programs for both girls and boys to keep them away from drug and illicit activities in their vulnerable communities, and these grew with the help of both local and international volunteers.

"In 2019, we started a school for vulnerable children from the ages of 4-15 years old whose parents cannot manage to take them to normal school due to lack of school fees so we have 100 students in our school.

"Most of the project`s areas is to help the under-30s who are our major focus, and for those [over the age of 30] we just try to offer a hand to make our approach to be more holistic."

One example of this holistic approach is the work carried out by a number of the organisation's volunteers at an old people's home, which is also based in Livingstone. Many of those staying at the home are originally from small rural communities in the Livingstone area, but ended up in the city because they had no family and so were unable to look after themselves.

"The volunteers work there for two to three hours per day, five days a week," says Chibbwalu. The volunteers do not stay there overnight, but instead stay at our rented volunteer house and we have different people that sign up to volunteer. Some of them are professional care-givers and the rest are non-professional helpers. Many of the volunteers assist at meal-times, while others help out with personal grooming and hygiene."

New Hope Waves also tackles societal problems such as gender equality, violence in the home and assists the local LGBT community where possible. Chibbwalu says that the organisation runs a number of gender equality courses aimed at raising the issues our communities are facing, such as gender based violence in homes and child abuse, and we are able to help the LGBT community as it is a very sensitive legal and moral issue here in Zambia."

"We are able to help the local LGBT community by opening up our activities to them all to participate. The problem is that they suffer from discrimination and a lack of support, so we need to raise awareness of their plight, and also of their right, like any other human being, to access services, resources and opportunities."

Auldridge also spoke about the problems faced by women the length and breadth of Zambia; in many cases, a woman's lot is far from a happy one, but his organisation are taking steps to change that.

"Apart from [domestic] violence, women here face challenges such as unwanted pregnancies, early marriages, gender inequality, child abuse - child defilement is on the rise - mental and sexual abuse. Negligence in the family [is also a problem] as some families cannot support their extended family's children."

This has led to a growing number of children having to take to the streets in order to fend for themselves; others end up leaving school, or receive no formal education at all, and eventually have to work in order to support their families. Still others find themselves becoming the head of the household.

"A number of children cannot go to schools as their families cannot afford to pay their school fees, so the children - mostly girls - drop out of school. There is a lack of employment prospects for senior boys and girls between the ages of 16 and 25, so we intend to provide vocational skills to empower them to have hands-on skills to make them employable [or to start their own businesses] to earn enough money to support their lives now and to give them a bright future."

Inevitably, some people are falling through the safety net that New Hope Waves is trying to provide, as Chibbwalu explained. "We had some adult education courses in the past, but due to a lack of resources and funding, we are currently unable to offer any. We have also helped some of those [living locally] who are physically and mentally disabled, but due to limited funding and resources, we are [currently] unable to continue down that path. But, we are ready to do so whenever we have partners who might come on board with the materials and resources to help us."

A lack of funds is also hampering Chibbwalu and his organisation's attempts to purchase premises where they can not only offer an education to school-age youngsters, but also vocational training and a place where women, LGBT and other groups can meet in safety; they have their eye on a particular building which would serve their needs, but they must raise some US$20000 in order to buy it, so donations would be very welcome indeed.

New Hope Waves even hope to host football training-sessions at the proposed new location and, should they succeed in purchasing the building they have set their heart on, they will need all the room they can get. According to Auldridge, "we have more than 200 boys and girls involved in our football programs and we have six people involved in teaching/coaching. All six are local volunteers who have the passion to coach, and to have a positive impact on the lives of young people. At the moment, we do not have any coaches coming from abroad to help."

The organisation has a number of teams, mostly for males as there is no local youth league for girls under the age of thirteen. But, there is a New Hope Waves adult women's team and a team for girls aged between 13 and 17, in addition to a adult men's team; both senior teams cater for players aged between 17 and 25. Around 150 young people play in the New Hope Waves teams. All of the teams play in kit which has been donated or sold to the organisation at a large discount.

Chibbwalu explained: "We have a senior boys team playing in the local SPAFA (Southern Province Amateur Football Association) Super League, which has more than 20 local teams in the urban and rural areas in and around Livingstone. The team was founded in 2016, and we currently have about 35 boys in the squad, but the season was suspended to due to Covid-19 in March.

"We do not have a stable source for the football kits, they were donated by individuals once in a while and sometimes when we have funds, we buy them (good new or used kits), and so we are currently in need of football kits to use for the season that restarted in the last week for the senior team." The SPAFA Super League may have restarted, but the New Hope Waves side had to sit out the first weekend back after an eight-month hiatus as their opponents had to request a postponement. The local women's season is yet to resume, meanwhile.

"We are playing some football matches at the Namatama Primary School Football Ground in Maramba, a district of Livingstone. Our football plans are to engage more girls and boys in our programmes, to get more soccer equipment and also to make our teams to play in the higher professional leagues. We want to to support these young people to achieve more in their social, academic and professional lives, and the football team to have a good financial base so that it can support our all football activities such as transport (buying a club bus) for players for games, match officiating, affiliation fees and administration costs, etc."

To do that, they will need outside help, as times are no less hard in Zambia than they are anywhere else, and the majority of the population are far from well-off. But, Auldridge Chibbwalu and the rest of the team involved in New Hope Waves are nothing if not driven; they started off with the hopes and dreams of one man and they have come a long way since then. With a bit of luck - and some outside assistance - they may yet come to fruition.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: Many thanks to Auldridge Chibbwalu for his kind assistance with the above article, and for his corrections and additions. To donate to New Hope Waves, or to find out more about the work they do and their aims and objectives, kindly visit their website via the following link:

https://www.newhopewaves.org/

All photographs are published with the kind permission of New Hope Waves, and written consent was kindly given to use those photographs containing under-age footballers. Anyone wishing to use said photographs is requested to contact New Hope Waves via the above website.

Tuesday, November 3, 2020

PFB ON TOUR: QUICK : SV OSS '20

A warm early autumn afternoon drew the good people of The Hague out of their homes and toward Sportpark Nieuw-Hanenburg, home of HVCV Quick, for their Derde Divisie match against SV Oss '20 on September 20. Both teams had enjoyed an unbeaten start to the season, with Quick gaining four points from their first two matches, while Oss '20 had won both of theirs.

Before kick-off, there was an impeccably-marked minute's silence in memory of two members of Quick's staff, Paul van de Beek and Patrick Berns, who had sadly died in the days before the match. The game itself started with both teams trying to get forward during the first ten minutes, but the final passes from both teams were, more often than not, found wanting.

Quick's Frank van der Heijden only just failed to connect with a cross which, for once, evaded the visitors' defence, whilst Jos Peltzer came close for Oss '20 with a shot which flashed just wide of the post. The first shot on target came from the away side after a quarter of an hour; Julian Calor embarked on a run into the penalty-area and unleashed a fierce shot, which Quick keeper Jari Puister did well to save at his near post.

The deadlock was broken by the home side two minutes later, when van der Heijden rose head and shoulders above a congested near post - so densely populated was it that it made a mockery of social distancing rules - to head in Elano Yegen's corner.

There was plenty of toing and froing in the minutes following van der Heijden's opener, but the closest either team came to scoring was when Tim Waterink's header almost drew Oss '20 level after 27 minutes; he should have at least got it on target as he rose unopposed to powerfully head Peltzer's cross just wide of the post. Van der Heijden was proving to be Quick's danger-man as the home side began to impose themselves on the match, half-volleying just wide from the edge of the box on the half-hour.

Suddenly, though, it was the visitors who had most of the best chances as the half drew to a close; first, Tom Pijnenberg almost took advantage of a hospital header from defender Pepijn van Zwieten de Blom inside his own penalty-area, but Pijnenberg's subsequent half-volley was well saved by Puister. Then, Waterink turned Quick's defenders inside-out as he attempted to carve out enough space to send in a shot; he succeeded, but Puister again did well to stop the shot.

Rachid Bouyaouzan had a shot blocked at the other end before, in first-half injury-time, Oss '20 substitute Jari van Ginkel headed a corner wide when it looked easier to score. Quick supporters could breathe a sigh of relief as their team headed into the break a goal to the good.

Bouyaouzan began the second half with a solo run through the Oss '20 defence, but the end product unfortunately dazzled less than the run, when he shot straight at keeper Rick van der Leest. A second goal came on 51 minutes; unfortunately for the home support, it was scored by Oss '20's Waterink, who, unchallenged, gleefully headed a cross from the left-hand side past Puister and into the bottom corner for the equaliser.

It was the beginning of a wretched 15 minutes or so for Quick, and for Bouyaouzan in particular. Very shortly afterwards, he was booked for dissent (the first yellow card of the afternoon), and, on the hour mark was, in this observer's opinion at least, crudely fouled in the centre-circle. The referee thought differently and allowed play to continue, and the visitors took advantage of the confusion by staging a quick counter-attack, which was finished off by Peltzer to give his side the lead.

Bouyaouzan had received prolonged treatment following the goal and was about to be substituted when he expressed his opinion once too often for referee Schaper's liking; he was shown his second yellow card. A needless sending-off which did the home side no good at all.

Tom Pijnenberg almost extended the Brabanders' lead with a quarter of an hour to go when he sprinted through the Quick defence on the left of the penalty-area, but his shot from an acute angle struck the post and rebounded away to safety.

A promising move by the hosts led to a delightful ball into the box from Ronaldo Lima Duarte Lopes which reached van der Heijden, but he suddenly stopped, thinking that a team-mate was in a better position behind him, and the ball travelled across the penalty-area and out of harm's way.

A late Quick cavalry charge in the third minute of injury-time came to nothing, but it led to an Oss '20 counter-attack which saw three against two; however, a poor pass led to a bit of scrappy play and, eventually, a corner-kick.

Two minutes later came the final nail in Quick's coffin when Oss '20 broke again; substitute Tony de Groot - who had replaced Tom Pijnenberg with ten minutes left - stormed down the left, eased past the last defender and scored from a reasonably tight angle to secure the points for the visitors.

It was a very measured display from the visitors, who always looked dangerous on the attack and, for the most part, secure in defence. Tom Pijnenberg, Peltzer and Waterink were impressive going forward, whilst Bram van de Rande and Bram Eltink marshalled things well at the back. Quick played well for long periods, and grievously missed Bouyaouzan after his sending-off. Van der Heijden was a constant threat upfront, and Puister had a good game between the sticks. Youngsters Elano Yegen - who played very well, especially in the first half - and Tyrese Asante also deserve a honourable mention. Positives aplenty for the four-times KNVB beker winners, but the points went home with the Brabanders, who extended their winning streak.

QUICK: 1 Jari PUISTER; 2 Jaap FISCHER, 4 Kai VAN HESE, 5 Pepijn VAN ZWIETEN DE BLOM, 7 Marc BOSHOFF, 8 Philip KOUWENHOVEN, 9 Frank VAN DER HEIJDEN, 10 Rachid BOUYAOUZAN, 12 Rick BURGERING (11 Ronaldo LIMA DUARTE LOPES), 21 Tyrese ASANTE (18 Bailey MEES)

SUBS (unused): 22 Tim JANSSEN; 16 Sam ZEEMAN, 19 Thomas VAN HAAFTEN

SV OSS '20: 1 Rick VAN DER LEEST, 3 Joep VAN DE RANDE, 4 Bram ELTINK, 5 Joep ENGELEN, 6 Bob ZONNENBERG, 8 Brian CAMPMAN, 10 Tom PIJNENBERG (9 Tony DE GROOT), 12 Dirk PIJNENBERG, 15 Jos PELTZER, 16 Julian CALOR (7 Joep VAN DER VELDEN), 19 Tim WATERINK

SUBS (unused): 1 Joep HOEFNAGELS; 14 Hidde VAN DIJK, 17 Jari VAN GINKEL, 23 Adam SESAY

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POSTSCRIPT: Quick followed up their defeat with two draws, 1:1 away to Heerlen side Groene Ster, and a 2:2 draw at home to HSC '21 from Haaksbergen, before the Derde Divisie fell victim to the latest round of Corona virus restrictions. This resulted in their First Round KNVB Beker match against NEC Nijmegen, which was due to be played on 27 October, being put back to 2 December.

The same fate befell Oss '20, who are scheduled to play Katwijk on the same date. Since their win in The Hague, they suffered two league defeats on the trot - 3:1 at home to OFC and 4:0 away to ADO '20, before beating Koninklijke HFC 1:0 away in the Second preliminary round of the KNVB Beker and drawing 3:3 at home against UNA in their last game before football action was mothballed.

Since the above defeat to Oss '20, Quick have slumped to twelfth in the table, while Oss '20 have gone down to fifth.

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