Short-Handed U.S. Men’s CP National Team Falls to Netherlands 8-3 in Second Match of World Cup Group Stage

SALOU, Spain (November 14, 2024) - Playing two players down for much of the second half, the U.S. Men’s Cerebral Palsy (CP) National Team fell to the Netherlands 8-3 in its second group-stage match at the 2024 IFCPF World Cup.

Captain Ben Lindau scored twice and forward Nick Mayhugh added another in a match where the U.S. came back from a 2-0 deficit, but faced a tough opponent for 18 of the 30-minute second half with five players after goalkeeper Marc Estrella receive a red card for denying a goal-scoring opportunity, and Mayhugh pick up his second yellow card in the game.

Head Coach Stuart Sharp made one change from the team that defeated Australia in the opener on Monday, inserting Shea Hammond for Jacob Crumbley up top.

The Dutch side - coming off a 10-0 win over Thailand - was on the front foot early and took the lead after ten minutes. Estrella had cleared a ball that was headed by a defender back across midfield to an unmarked Bruno Hoek, who finished past Estrella from the top of the box for his fifth goal of the tournament.

Estrella then kept the game in hand with a fantastic dive to his right to deny Sem van Helden’s hard shot from 15 yards.

However the Netherlands would double the lead when Hoek set up Jeroen Saedt inside the area for a shot past defender John Sullivan’s attempted block from 12 yards out.

The U.S. then finished the half with confidence. Shea Hammond was denied at the near post by goalkeeper Damian Schellekens. Lowery got on the end of the second-chance play off the corner kick with a rip from 20 yards that Schellekens also did well to save. Lindau and Mayhugh also got off shots that went wide.

Mayhugh then cut the lead in half on another nice team goal. The play started from the right side on a throw-in and worked its way to the forward on the left flank. He advanced it for Lowery and continued his run into the area. Lowery played it to Hammond near the endline, who headed it back to the middle of the area for Mayhugh to roof it for his second goal of the competition.

The U.S. continued its momentum to start the second half, again with Hammond threatening from the right toward the post with Schellekens parrying the ball out for a corner kick. Mayhugh sent in a driven ball that Lindau met at the near post with a flicked header past Schellekens to level the game.

The Netherlands came right back to take the lead with Saedt again finding himself in the middle of the area to finish from close range.

The game then took a massive turn. From midfield, Hoek sprung Saedt alone at goal. Estrella anticipated the play and came out, but couldn’t avoid contact and tripped Saedt outside the box. The referee showed Estrella a straight red for denying a goal scoring opportunity.

Jacob Crumbley - who scored twice on Monday against Australia - stepped into goal and Hoek put away the free kick.

Having already overcome a two-goal deficit, the U.S. cut back into the lead, but it came with a cost. Mayhugh took the ball into the box and was tripped near the right post. While the referee showed defender Jeroen Schuitert for the challenge, he also showed Mayhugh his second yellow for dissent.

Lindau stepped up and converted the penalty kick, but the short-handed USA was challenged and conceded four goals in the final 14 minutes.

The USA will finish group play on Friday, November 15 against Thailand (9:30 a.m. ET; IFCPF YouTube), with a win guaranteeing passage to the quarterfinals, while a draw combined with an Australia loss or draw to the Netherlands would also be enough.

-U.S. MEN’S CP NATIONAL TEAM MATCH REPORT-

Match: United States Men’s CP National Team vs. Netherlands
Date: Nov. 14, 2024
Competition: 2024 IFCPF World Cup – Group C
Venue: Mediterranean Sports Village; Salou, Spain
Attendance: N/A
Kickoff: 3:30 p.m. local (9:30 a.m. ET)
Weather: 65 degrees, clear

Lineups:
USA: 1-Marc Estrella (ejection, 35), 2-Frankie Lowery (9-Cameron DeLillo, 40), 4-Wesley Pincince, 5-John Sullivan (6-Jacob Kaplan, 53), 7-Shea Hammond (3-Jacob Crumbley, 37), 10-Ben Lindau (Capt.), 11-Nick Mayhugh (ejection, 42)
Substitutes not used: 8-Michael Ruiz, 12-Chileshe Chitulangoma, 13-Kyle Montgomery, 14-Gavin Kohner
Head coach: Stuart Sharp

NED: 16-Damian Schellekens, 4-Lorenzo Calkhoven, 5-Jochem Kintz, 6-Jeroen Schuitert (Capt.) (3-Wessel Doorduin, 51), 7-Jeroen Saedet (8-Guido Flores, 57), 10-Bruno Hoek, 12-Sem van Helden
Substitutes not used: 1-Kevin Jannssen, 2-Sam Voorbach, 8-Guido Flores, 11-Malik De La Cruz Victoria, 13-Danny Van Amerongen, 14-Harm Panneman
Head coach: Stephen Lokhoff

Stats Summary: USA / NED
N/A

Misconduct Summary:
USA – Nick Mayhugh (Caution) 10th minute
NED – Jeroen Saedt (Caution) 11
USA – Marc Estrella (Ejection) 35
USA – John Sullivan (Caution) 39
NED - Jeroen Schuitert (Caution) 42
USA – Nick Mayhugh (Caution) 42
USA – Nick Mayhugh (Ejection) 42

Officials:
Referee: Dario Rojas (ARG)
AR1: N/A
AR2: N/A
Fourth Official: Adrian Santa (COL)