Hoedemakers was right behind Van de Graaf in the 29th minute when the arbiter suddenly swung his arm back. Cambuur’s midfielder was hit full in the eye, went down and even had to be replaced just before half time. “That was the tipping point for us,” Cambuur trainer Pascal Bosspoelt said afterwards at ESPN. “We lost our most important player.”
According to Bosrischt, Hoedemakers’ injury ensured that FC Utrecht could return to the match. “Because his vision was blurred, he lost his husband. As a result, he let his opponent run and it became 1-2. I think it’s the first time in history that the referee has injured a player.”
Cambuur and Hoedemakers, who had to be replaced with a headache, couldn’t get over that blow. Boschaart: “We started well and ended up at 0-2. After the 1-2 and the 2-2 we lost it. At FC Utrecht, the substitution with Veerman turned out fantastic, for us the resignation of Hoedemakers was the turning point.”
Boschaart did not want to blame Van de Graaf for that matter. “He was most upset about it. At halftime, he came to have a look and apologized. He solved that neatly.”
