Dutch hit ground running

A goal in each half from Siem de Jong and Diego Biseswar got the Netherlands off to the perfect start in qualifying for the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship with a 2-0 win over Finland in Group 4.

Pot debut
It was the first competitive match under new coach Cor Pot since the resignation of Foppe de Haan, who led the Jong Oranje to the title in 2006 then again on home soil in 2007, and the new man in charge soon had reason to cheer. On 15 minutes, Feyenoord's Leroy Fer broke clear of the defence and teed up AFC Ajax midfielder De Jong, who fired beyond Jukka Lehtovaara from the edge of the area.

Rematch
A crowd of 6,057 at the FC Emmen Stadium had to wait until 15 minutes from time for the second goal when the contest was finally put beyond doubt. Arsenal FC's Nacer Barazite and Fer combined well to put Biseswar through on goal and the Feyenoord striker made no mistake. It was an important win for the Netherlands, with Spain and Poland also in contention in a tough-looking section, and they will be looking to repeat the feat when the two sides meet again at the Töölön Pallokenttä Stadium in Helsinki in October.