After two planned victories against Germany and Slovakia, it is time for the group final for Finland in the floorball WC in Uppsala – and that against the home favorite Sweden who is chasing an eighth straight WC gold.
Normally, there would have been no doubt about who received the advance tips, but given that Finland defeated Sweden in a four-nation tournament on penalties earlier this autumn, there may be reason to re-evaluate the situation. Or?
– We know that we will always perform well in a World Cup, but it does not matter how it ends in training tournaments, says the Finnish national team star Veera Kauppi, everyday in the Swedish champions Thorengruppen, who still admits:
– It was nice to get a win against them this autumn. It was the first loss for Sweden in six years, it’s completely sick.
Yes, Finland actually is the only national team that has managed to defeat Sweden in the last 16 years. To find a defeat against another opponent, we have to back the band to February 2005 when Switzerland won 4-3.
But even though the Swedish superiority got a little thorny with Finland’s victory in September, Veera Kauppi’s teammate in both club and national teams and twin sister, Oona Kauppi, have their feet on the ground.
– Sweden is the favorite in the World Cup but for us I think it’s just good that we are a bit underdog. They have all the pressure on them, she states.
– Oona Kauppi tops the shooting league in the Swedish super league.
Photo: Maxim Thoré / Bildbyrån
Oona Kauppi tops the shooting league in the super league with 22 goals in ten matches. In terms of number of points (32), however, Veera Kauppi is the best in the series. Up there is also the Swedish national team veteran Emelie Wibron, who also plays in the Thorengruppen, with 31 points – and she realizes that it will not be easy to keep track of her Finnish friends from the club team in the IFU arena.
– It is nicer to play in the same team as them than to meet them in the national team, she says with a light laugh.
– I think they account for a lot of, above all, the attacking game in the Finnish national team and they always play at the top when they play there, it feels like. They are very difficult to stop.
What is it that makes them so sharp going forward?
– It is a combo of many things. They have a cruel game perception and technology, then they have a chemistry among themselves that makes them find each other like no other. They are really good at playing floorball simply, says Emelie Wibron.
The 24-year-old twins themselves point on an improved breadth and routine when they talk about Finland’s chances of sniffing Sweden for another World Cup gold. Five of the players in the Finnish squad are championship debutants, which is five fewer than, for example, Sweden.
– If I remember correctly, we had eleven debutants in the World Cup last time (2019), and there were too many. We did not have the knowledge and experience to handle that situation, we did not really know how to react and what it took to win. I think we are much stronger there now, says Oona Kauppi and is supported by Sister Veera:
– A few years ago, many key players left the national team. It was half the team and we had to start over. It was hardly known if it was a women’s team or a girls’ team. That was the feeling you had – we had very young players. Now we have had the same player all the time and have not had to rebuild. We have built up the foundation and then it feels much better.
Oona Kauppi does not hide behind a chair saying that it would be incredibly wonderful to stop Sweden’s impressive suite of seven straight championship golds. To succeed in this, it is of the utmost importance that the Finnish collective surpasses the Swedish, she points out.
– We have some tactical stuff where we may be a little better. We may not have as many awesome individual players as Sweden, we can state that. But our interaction with five men, I think has always been our thing. We focus a lot on that, we talk a lot and it is the whole team that will win. It is important to us that our five have different roles and ours must deliver going forward.
– If we meet Sweden in the semifinals or finals, they will give 120 percent in that match. We want to win and in a match anything can happen.
It’s hard to win over Sweden, but I feel that we are getting closer and closer – and I think they feel that too.
Finland has not won a World Cup gold since 2001. Two years ago it was bronze in Switzerland, but this time Veera Kauppi hopes for the noblest of denominations.
– I would say that we have good chances. It’s hard to win over Sweden, but I feel that we are getting closer and closer – and I think they feel that too. Then there are other nations that also come, Switzerland in particular.
Do you have a good strike position now?
– Yes, it was 20 years since Finland won a World Cup gold, so you can not say that there was a winning culture in the team. I think we have good chances but we have to perform very well.
Is the goal gold?
– Yes absolutely. It always is. After the last World Cup when it “only” became bronze, we feel that we want to do better and get revenge, says Veera Kauppi.
The match between Sweden and Finland starts at 16.55 on Tuesday.
Read more:
Guide to the floorball WC in Uppsala – Sweden goes for the eighth straight gold
“Would be fun if more people played after they turned 30”
Sweden won as planned in the World Cup premiere – crushed Slovakia
Sweden’s dominance in the World Cup continues – drove over Germany
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