The IFF will write a preview of each competition day with information about the teams, the players and the match itself. The previews can also be found at the WKK Sport Center and will be distributed to media. This way also the media personnel who are not that familiar with the sport, can find it easier to follow.
During the first day, Finland secured their spot in the semi-finals and Group A winner by winning against both Czech Republic and Poland. Switzerland dominated against the USA and also won their first match.
Group A Group B
Finland (1*) Sweden (2)
Czech Republic (4) Switzerland (3)
Poland (13) USA (11)
* = placement in WFC 2016
Previous TWG results:
FIN – CZE 4-2
SUI – USA 17-0
POL – FIN 0-5
WFC = World Floorball Championships. The WFC 2016 acted as the qualification tournament for The World Games. All medallists, best neighbouring team to Poland, host country Poland and the best non-European team qualified.
All Stars Team = In every WFC, an All Stars Team is elected by the media representatives.
USA v SWE 12:00
Team USA suffered a tough loss against Switzerland yesterday. Their playing style was rather static and they defended most of the match. Now they are facing the WFC 2016 silver medallists who are known goal scorers. It might be that they’re using the same tactic than against Switzerland: park the bus and go for the counter attacks.
Team Sweden have a really strong roster for The World Games. Whereas other teams might have had injuries, team Sweden seems to have all of their stars with them. They lost the thrilling WFC final to Finland on penalty shots and are now out for vengeance. They want to be the number one again, starting with The World Games. Sweden have also had a change in leadership as they have a new head coach Mikael Hill.
Players to watch
USA
#83 Stefan Zimmerman: One of the top scorers of team USA in the WFC 2016 in Riga.
#20 Alexander McVey: Always entertaining player that scored the goal that brought USA to TWG.
#88 Reed Hearns: A solid player who can play several positions and is constantly developing.
SWE
#9 Alexander Galante-Carlström: A sniper who was elected as the best player in the world 2016.
#7 Kim Nilsson: A sniper and a playmaker. Probably one of the best offensive players in the history.
#20 Emil Johansson: Versatile player and Sweden’s next super star.
Previous results
USA and Sweden have not faced each other previously, which makes the match more interesting.
CZE v POL 17:30
The Czech team played an active and physical match against Finland yesterday. The game was rather even, but in the end Finland were stronger. Poland also lost a match to Finland. They were really energetic, but their physique couldn’t handle the third period.
Czech Republic are the favourite in the match, but Poland showed yesterday against Finland that they can put up a fight. Both teams have previously played active and entertaining floorball. If the Polish have recovered well enough from their match against Finland and their goalkeeper #74 Maciej Bogdanski plays as good as yesterday, the match could get really interesting.
Players to watch
CZE
#12 Patrik Suchanek: Don’t let his size fool you. A skillfull defender who’s ready for hard contact.
#19 Patrik Doza: A playmaker with soft hands and ability to decide games.
#23 Ondrej Nemecek: Talented right-handed defender who makes calm decisions even though he’s young.
POL
#52 Lukasz Chlebda: Very experienced forward who keeps his cool in the hottest situations.
#11 Michal Sienko: Young but experienced defender with good anticipation and incredible shooting and passing skills.
#74 Maciej Bogdański: Hardworking goalkeeper who is hard to beat on a good day. Leader of the defensive zone.
Previous results
09.09.2016 POL – CZE 4 – 16
12.09.2010 POL – CZE 1 – 11
SWE v SUI 20:00
Switzerland defeated USA in their opening match yesterday. In today’s match, we will see current bronze medallists battle against one of the biggest floorball countries, Sweden.
Sweden have already played one match against USA in the morning whereas Switzerland have fresh feet. These two teams have had some even matches in the past, and some matches have even been decided on penalty shots. In the end, Sweden have been the victorious team when the matches have been played to the end.
Players to watch
SWE
#25 Jonas Svahn: Talented centre who is one of the fastest players in floorball.
#17 Rasmus Enström: A complete player who was chosen as World’s best player in 2012 and 2015.
#27 Robin Nilsberth: Physical defender who is good with the ball.
SUI
#19 Matthias Hofbauer: All time WFC Top Scorer and a living floorball legend.
#2 Nicola Bischofberger: Young defender who has a really good long-distance shot.
#23 Manuel Engel: Experienced player despite his young age who plays in the Swedish Top League, SSL.
Previous results (three latest)
27.04.2017 SUI – SWE 5 – 6
10.12.2016 SWE – SUI 7 – 2
05.11.2016 SWE – SUI 7 – 5
For more information about the teams and players visit www.floorball.org.
We have interviews with the head coaches as well as some of the players and team presentations! You can find them in written at www.floorball.org/pages/EN/The-World-Games-2017 and videoclips at www.youtube.com/user/iffchannel/You can also find us on social media: IFF Floorball #floorball
