Halifax. The Little Crowns slid hard against Canada.
He is now expected to meet a rival with Finland in the quarter-finals
– We are numerically larger than Finland, says defender Ludwig Jansson confidently.
In the event of a win over Canada, Junior Crowns would have had to stay in Halifax and face Switzerland.
But it was nowhere near a Swedish victory. Canada led 3-0 after 11 minutes and eventually won 5-1.
Now the Junior Crowns were third in the group, instead they were forced to change their venue, to Moncton, and face Finland.
Something the Swedish players are looking forward to, at least that’s what they said in the mixed zone after losing to Canada:
It couldn’t be more fun than facing Finland in the quarter-finals. It’s a competitive encounter and we have to take care of that,” says team captain Viktor Sternborg.
Two consecutive losses in the playoffs
Finland has won the junior title in the last two tournaments. Recently, in August, there was a huge loss in the semi-finals:
– We feel a great desire for revenge, says Sternburg.
Union captain Magnus Havild has been reunited after the big loss against Canada
– A good passer-by for us. I find it hard to see any other team playing at this pace. We will learn from that and take it to the quarter-finals.
And Finland is waiting there.
– A team we know very well, we’ve played against since the Under-16s, the classic rivalry encounter. The focus will now be on leaving this match behind, filling in the holes and preparing for a real battle on Monday, says Hävelid.
Back Ludwig Jansson is looking forward to the meeting with Finland:
– It tastes good, the qualifiers are what we are here for and playing in the quarter-finals against Finland tastes good. We’ll go there and deserve to be in the semi-finals.
“She has all the conditions to beat Finland”
What is he talking about you?
– We have arranged good offers. We’re bringing the second period with us today. We cannot dwell on this loss. We must go there with the position we know very well. We can go there with good balance and confidence. We have all the conditions to beat Finland
Is Finland the favourite?
– no I do not think so.
Even though they are second in their group and you are third in yours?
– no I do not think so. We are outnumbered, says Ludwig Jansson.
The match will take place on Monday at 17:00 Swedish time.