Pinoké striker Joep Troost unleashed: five goals and a club record

His scoring drive got off to a slow start. In the first match after the winter break, away against ORANJE-ROOD, he remained dry. But then the bear went wild. He started with his very first Hoofdklasse hat-trick during the 8-1 win over Nijmegen, followed by a goal in the 2-4 victory over the same opponent. And then came the icing on the cake: last Saturday, Troost shot his name into the history books by scoring five times against KLEIN ZWITSERLAND (5-2).

That explosion of goals is extra special because Troost was still struggling with an injury in the first half of the season and only scored twice. Now that he is fit again, he has worked his way to the sub-top of the top scorers' list at lightning speed with eleven goals and is breathing down the neck of the Hoofdklasse's best shooters.

Equalling club record

With his five-goal haul, Troost also made club history. Only two other Pinoké players ever managed to score five times in a big league match: Belgian penalty-corner canon Alexander Hendrickx (13 May 2023 against Voordaan, 3-7) and teammate Miles Bukkens (9 November 2024 against Hurley, 0-7). But Troost is the first to pull off this feat in a home match for Pinoké.

Scoring five goals in one match? It is not unknown territory for Troost. In October 2023, he already did it once in the cup tournament against transitional league side Myra. 'That was different,' he responds. 'Scoring five goals in the Hoofdklasse is quite a different story.'

Watch the interview with Joep Troost after last Saturday's home game with KZ below.