Geurts gears up for Finnish test

Netherlands goalkeeper Loes Geurts is bracing herself for a tough, physical encounter with the host nation when they take on Finland in Group A at UEFA WOMEN'S EURO 2009™ on Wednesday.

Winning start
With both sides having opened with a win on Sunday, the Netherlands beating Ukraine 2-0 and Finland edging Denmark 1-0, the prospect of a decent run in the tournament is clearly up for grabs at Helsinki's Olympic Stadium. Geurts, who has been the Dutch No1 since 2006 and the retirement of record cap-holder Marleen Wissink, is aware she will need to draw on her experience in what promises to be a demanding game.

'Tough game'
"We know a few things about Finland, that they're physically strong and that it's going to be a tough game," said the 23-year-old AZ Alkmaar keeper. "But we're going to go for it. We've seen videos of them and I especially watched the strikers. I don't think it's a case of one or two players in particular, though; Finland are strong as a team."

Set-pieces
In particular, she saw the problems which Finland caused Denmark from free-kicks, notably the match-winning goal from Maija Saari, when what looked like a cross into the box ending up bouncing unchallenged into the back of the net. "We know that Finland are good at set-pieces and we are going to have to watch that," Guerts said. Having learnt her skills as a girl by playing against her three brothers, defending a roofed bus shelter, she is perhaps used to dealing with the unusual. "The box is my area, and I know what I have to take and what the defenders have to clear," she added.