The Estonian Superfinal took place on Sunday 2nd of May in Kalev Sports Hall in Tallinn. Eesti Maaülikool took home the Women’s championship title and Sparta team Automaailm I the Men’s championship title. Eesti Maaülikool won the Men’s bronze medal.

Women’s final

Sparta and Eesti Maaülikool met in the Women’s final. Eesti Maaülikool showed a good game from the beginning of the final and by the middle of the game, the team led already 4-0. The Sparta had a lot of opportunities during the game, but they did not manage to score more than two goals. Final score 4-2 and Eesti Maaülikool were crowned as champions.

Eesti Maaülikool’s Edith Pärnik, the best player of the final and the scorer of two goals, was pleased with the progress, but acknowledged that playing the whole game like that also has its dangers:

— Sparta scored two goals back and it already set the alarm bells on. The coach took the timeout at the right time and said that we have not won anything yet, and in order it not to slip away, we must focus at every moment.

According to Sparta’s coach Morten Talviste, there was a lack of quality in the offensive zone today and Tartu team played a very heartfelt defence. Sparta made it to the Superfinal by winning the regular season but Talviste did not think that getting directly to the final would have played too much of a role:

— We came to the Superfinal with good emotion, because we had shown a good game in the regular season and trained hard before the final. In the regular season matches, Tartu always lacked one of the key players, which is why it was not possible to play against their full team before today. The ball is round, they had more luck today. It cannot be said that we have not worked hard. 

Pärnik, however, considered the semi-final series to be important before the Superfinal:

— We got used to the difficult games in the semi-final series. The decisive games showed how we have to come into the game to win. 

• The top scorer of the regular season: Kati Kütisaar (Sparta)
• Best goalkeeper of the regular season: Saskia Ormak (Sparta)
• The top scorer of the play-offs: Edith Pärnik (Eesti Maaülikool)
• Best goalkeeper the play-offs: Anastasia Sokolova (Eesti Maaülikool)
• Season MVP: Reti Väärt (Eesti Maaülikool)

Men’s final

The Men’s final was decided between Sparta team Automaailm I and Jõgeva SK Tähe / Olivia. Sparta team Automaailm I started the game perfectly, winning the first period 4-0. Jõgeva SK Tähe / Olivia showed stronger resistance in the second third, winning the period 1-0, but it was not enough to win the title. The last third belonged to Sparta again and the game ended in a 7-2 victory for the team of Tallinn.

Egert Unga, who finished a hat-trick in the game, was surprised by the big advantage they got from the beginning of the match and also in the third period:

— Before the game, we thought that there would be a bit fragile and goal-poor start on both sides, because a lot is at stake. Surprisingly, however, we were able to score four unanswered goals and achieve strong success. In the second third, we probably remained a bit passive, but fortunately for us, Jõgeva only punished our passivity once. In the third, we were in our element again. 

Jõgeva SK Tähe / Olivia coach Marko Saksing assessed the start of his team as poor:

— We played poorly in the first third. The thing about the Superfinal is that if there is one game and something goes wrong, you will not be given many opportunities to improve something. Small things affect the game. In such games, the first goal is quite important and determines the course of the game.

Sparta team Automaailm I checked the game successfully from start to finish. Unga praised the team as a whole and did not want to highlight his contribution:

— Nothing would be done without five team mates. Every player made a big contribution to our success, today I managed to score those goals. The victory was brought by the team spirit. We succeeded in practically everything today! 

In the Men’s bronze match Eesti Maaülikool met SK Link/Saku and Eesti Maaülikool finally won the tight bronze match 10-9.

• The top scorer of the regular season: Kristjan Puu (SK Link / Saku)
• Best goalkeeper of the regular season: Remo Merimaa (Sparta team Automaailm I)
• The top scorer of the play-offs: Egert Unga (Sparta team Automaailm I)
• Best goalkeeper of the play-offs: Rainer Kalde (Jõgeva SK Tähe / Olivia)
• Season MVP: Egert Unga (Sparta team Automaailm I)

All match highlights available on the Saalihoki YouTube channel.

Source and more information on the Estonian Floorball Union website.