Belgian Women’s Cup: Rasante and Herakles Spring the Surprises as Gantoise Cruise Through
Cup nights are supposed to be about this. A grey, wet Wednesday in Belgium, nobody much watching, and two top-flight sides went home early.
The Coupe Dr Oetker women’s last 16 threw up two proper upsets. Rasante, from Nationale 1, knocked out Uccle Sport, and Herakles did the same to Victory. Both did it the way the Belgian Cup lets you do it: lower-division sides start with a two-goal head start, so a draw on the pitch is enough.
Rasante’s was the louder of the two. They held Uccle at 2-0 for most of the game on the handicap, Uccle pulled one back from a penalty corner in the third quarter, and with two minutes left Clara Buissière was brought down by the Uccle goalkeeper. Julieta Huss buried the stroke to make it 3-1. Rasante coach David Van Rysselberghe didn’t hide what it meant: “We drew with a top-flight side, so yes, we deserve this win.”
And look at the team that did it. Camille Vekemans is out for three months, Caro Van Buggenhout has just had a finger operation, Antoinette Adam is out with a knee injury and waiting on a medical verdict. Rasante played with two under-19s and two under-16s in the side. That’s not a cup upset, that’s a statement.
Herakles punish Victory
The second surprise followed the same script. Herakles, also Nationale 1, drew 2-2 with Victory on the pitch and went through 4-2 with the handicap. They were the better side in the first half, according to coach Gilles Verdussen, leading 3-1 with a strike from Lola Brea, a rebound finished by Lilla Van Moerckerke and a Cinda Sosa deflection over the goalkeeper. Victory pushed hard after the break but Herakles found a way out every time.
Gantoise do the job, Watducks survive a shootout
At the top end of the draw, Gantoise were never in trouble. Ambre Ballenghien scored what was probably the fastest goal of the day to put them ahead at Léopold, Vickey Granatto made it 2-0 in the second quarter and Emilie Verhees finished it off 3-0 from a penalty-corner deflection. “We did the job,” was the verdict from the Gantoise camp. No fuss, no drama.
Waterloo Ducks had all the drama instead. Orée, also starting with two goals, held them 4-4 and the tie went to a shootout. Goalkeeper Viviane De Jonghe saved three of them and the Watducks went through 2-1. Coach Xavier De Greve was honest about it: his side didn’t take their chances, Orée defended with heart, and the weather was dreadful. The Watducks’ goals came from Louise Van Herendael, Chloé Delhalle, Sarah Torrans and Daphné Gose.
Elsewhere Antwerp put nine past Pingouin in a 9-3 win, Leuven beat Indiana 4-2, Louvain-la-Neuve beat LARA 2-0, and Ombrage beat Baudouin 2-0 to become the only Nationale 2 side left in the competition.
Quarter-finals set for 22 November
The draw for Sunday 22 November has thrown up some ties worth watching. Rasante get Gantoise, which is a brutal reward for a cup upset. Herakles face Antwerp. Ombrage, still carrying a four-goal start as the lowest-ranked side left, meet the Waterloo Ducks. And Leuven play Louvain-la-Neuve.
For our money, Rasante against Gantoise is the tie of the round. Gantoise are top of the league and just put three past Léopold without breaking sweat, but Rasante have already shown they don’t care about reputations. If they get another two-goal start and the same spirit, don’t be surprised if this one gets uncomfortable.
