PORTO – What a bizarre final day it was this Sunday in the European Cup for Frédéric Caudron and his team from Soissons. The French team won the European Cup for club teams in Porto by defeating FC Porto in the final: 6-2. Caudron won that final 40-11 against Dick Jaspers in 8 innings after his painful loss in the semi-final to Eddy Merckx 40-20 in 14 innings. The Belgian leading player of Soissons then showed his teammates the way to European gold in the final with his super-fast match against Dick Jaspers. Caudron is the record holder now with 13 victories in the Coupe D’Europe for teams.
The battle for prestige between two world stars was also remarkable after the World Cup and the European Cup. Frédéric Caudron beat Jaspers three times in one week, during the World Cup in Porto and the European Cup in Porto. He did that once in the World Cup 40-35 in 27 and twice in the European Cup: first 40-30 in 18 and finally in the final 40-11 in 8 (averaging 5,000).
The title won by the French team from Soissons, with Caudron, Bury, Soumagne, Devogelaere and Vasseur, was a reward for the strong collective performance, but also had the aftertaste of the miraculous outcome in the semi-final. Frédéric Caudron and Jérémy Bury were swept away with big scores by Eddy Merckx (40-20) and Jean Paul de Bruijn (40-21). The Danish team Varde BK had much better scores, but after the final score of 4-4 (Soumagne and Devogelaere won for Soissons), the CEB rules did not provide for a Danish victory due to Varde BK's higher average and caroms, but penalties were decisive in the end. In those shoot-outs, Soissons won 12-9.
The French, with Belgian Caudron as their leader, took advantage of the new opportunity thanks to the rules. BK Varde lost the title despite two magnificent victories by their leaders.
Caudron's quick win in the final against Jaspers was followed by a rapid lead by Pierre Soumagne against Jose Miguel Soares (19-9 and 31-12) and finally a 40-19 win in 34. Mikaël Devogelaere also won against Joao Pedro Ferreira with 40-24 in 22, leaving Rui Manuel Costa to fight for honour against Jérémy Bury: that match was stopped at 6-2 with the score at 34-29 for Rui Costa.
It was the first victory in the Coupe D'Europe for Soissons, after the French had won eight years in a row with the Agipi team. The team was dethroned by the Turks of Bahcelievler in 2013.
Frédéric Caudron is now the absolute record holder for victories in the Coupe D'Europe. He won thirteen times in total with six different teams.
The Belgian won his first with Crystal Kelly in 2003. He then triumphed eight times with Agipi from 2005 onwards. Caudron achieved the four other victories with Dallinga (2014), Gaziantespor (2015), BC Baulois (2018) and now with Soissons.
Marco Zanetti won 12 times, Torbjörn Blomdahl 9 times, and Dick Jaspers 5 times.
Semi-finals in Porto
There was a kind of miracle in the European Cup in Porto. Varde BK was the best team in the first semi-final, but Soissons secured a place in the final on penalties. FC Porto was an outsider in the other semi-final against Göztepe Spor, but surprisingly reached the final. Dick Jaspers was the only loser for Porto against Tayfun Tasdemir (40-23 in 16). The Portuguese players Rui Manuel Costa, Jose Miguel Soares and Joao Pedro Ferreira won their matches.
The leaders of the Danish Varde BK, Belgian Eddy Merckx and Dutchman Jean Paul de Bruijn, saved the best for last in this European Cup. Varde BK, the reigning champions, drew with Soissons in the semi-final on Sunday morning, the French that seemed to be the big favorites based on the preliminary rounds. Varde and Soissons finished 4-4, but Merckx's victory over Caudron and De Bruijn's victory over Bury were not enough to tip the balance. With the score at 4-4, the match had to be decided by penalties, which Soissons won 12-9.
That was a disappointment for Varde BK, which had played such a great semi-final. The leaders were in top form and beat their two opponents by a heavy knock-out. Eddy Merckx won the Belgian clash against Frédéric Caudron with a show of strength: 40-20 in 14, averaging 2,857 and 1,428. Merckx shone with a run of 11. Jean Paul de Bruijn, after a very mediocre start, showed his great qualities at the decisive moment. He defeated French champion Jérémy Bury 40-21 in 16, with averages of 2.500 and 1.312. De Bruijn, a man of highs and lows, shone with a run of 14.
The other two matches ended in France's favour, but the difference in averages was far in Varde's favor. However, the rules state that averages or caroms do not count. Pierre Soumagne's 40-35 victory over Dion Nelin in 23 and Mikaël Devogelaere's 40-26 victory over Allan Schröder in 29 brought the score to 4-4, so according to the same rules, penalties had to decide the outcome. Soissons won 12-9.
Pierre Soumagne and Frédéric Caudron
Jérémy Bury and Mikaël Devogelaere
The FC Porto team took silver
The final standing:
- Soissons
- FC Porto
- Varde BK
- Göztepe Spor