Spakenburg refurbishes stands for cup match against PSV: ‘Some heavy lifting’

Two extra stands, extra lights, goal-line technology. And then there must also be a place along the soccer field where the VAR screen can be. Saturday amateur club SV Spakenburg is busy with the final preparations for the semi-final of the tournament for the KNVB Cup, against premier league club PSV.

“It’s quite a bit of lugging, yes,” Gert, one of the stand builders, told RTV Utrecht,

At the same time, he puts his own work into perspective. After all, PSV will be visiting now, but for the well-attended regional derby against IJsselmeervogels, a stand is sometimes built. “We are not doing this for the first time, it is a routine job,” he states soberly.

The fact is that tension is growing on Spakenburg’s Sportpark de Westmaat. Wednesday evening a tarpaulin was pulled with the necessary force over part of the extra stand that had just been built. The skeleton of the temporary grandstand is already in place: the posts have been erected, the seats ‘sit’ on the top row and now it is the turn of the roof.

In two days, two additional bleachers are being erected from the ground: one behind the goal on the south side of the field and a smaller one in front of the canteen. This is to ensure that as many people as possible can attend the semi-finals. With the extra stands, a capacity of up to eight thousand people is possible. A maximum of six thousand people may attend the match, including 300 PSV supporters.

Additional lights are attached on the other side of the soccer field. These are needed for the TV coverage. Three additional lamps each will be attached to the already existing light poles. And that is not a job for people afraid of heights, said one of the technicians, who climbed to the top of one of the masts with cables and a harness.

With the extra stands and lights, the job is not done yet. Soccer association KNVB believes the stadium must also meet a number of requirements. For example, offside cameras will be installed at the 16-meter line.

There must also be a suitable place, somewhere near the field, where the referee can watch the VAR screen. And speaking of VAR, the images will be judged, as always, at the KNVB in Zeist. But between Sportpark de Westmaat in Spakenburg and Zeist there is no “fixed” line, as there is at the premier league clubs. That’s why the KNVB is arranging for a bus to come to Spakenburg, with all the equipment. So that the video referee can simply watch the match.

The Spakenburg-PSV duel will be played on Tuesday, April 4. The other semifinal between Feyenoord and Ajax is scheduled one day later. The winner of the semi-final between Feyenoord and Ajax will be the home team in the final of the KNVB Cup on Sunday, April 30.