De Graafschap grab shock fourth
As Ricardo Sousa's 92nd-minute through ball evaded defender Timmy Simons and rolled into his path in front of goal, De Graafschap's entire season must have flashed before Mamadou Zongo's eyes. It wouldn't have been a very inspiring vision.
Anyone searching for some excitement in this predictable Division Two season should have been at the Stadion De Vijverberg last night, where the climactic end to an otherwise drab campaign for the Dutch club was a hard-fought, scrappy encounter with fellow strugglers Club Brugge. A rejuvenated Ruslan Valeev added to his two goals against Nantes last week by giving the home side the lead with a first half header, only for Bosko Balaban to equalise for the Belgians with a neat left foot shot shortly afterwards.
It seemed like these two stuttering teams would battle out a futile draw and share the ignominy of the foot of the table. That is until Burkina Faso international Zongo found himself through on goal deep into injury time, and displayed admirable composure to calmly sidefoot the ball into the corner of Stijn Stijner's net. That single goal, scored with the very last kick of the entire season, not only kept De Graafschap from propping up the league table, it even fired them into their best ever finish of fourth position.
Zongo (centre) engulfed by the home crowd in celebration
Of course, this dramatic incident alone still failed to enliven what was an uneventful season in Division Two. Those media pundits who crowed about the impending domination of the division by relegated duo Paris St Germain and Feyenoord can now sit back and gaze smugly at the final standings; PSG top the table and go up as champions, while Feyenoord follow close behind and add the 2008 Division Two Cup to their roll of honours. A nine point gap does not give full justification to the gulf that separated these two from the rest.
For De Graafschap there is the consolation of a new highest finish and the award for midfielder Ricardo Sousa as the Central European League Division Two Player of the Year. One wonders how long the Dutch minnows can hold onto a player who has already voiced his frustrations in the past, particularly if this summer is as barren for them as the last. However, the late revival that saw them impress in Nantes with a rare, classy performance last week, followed by the tough win last night, might just be enough to re-ignite a flame of optimistic hope by the time August comes around.