Hirschfeld to be main goalkeeper
By Håvard Lindheim, 27 March 2006, 10:51
Lars Hirschfeld has been given a good reward for his efforts during the friendlies this winter. Sunday, he was selected as the main choice between the posts.
Photo: Thomas Karlsen
So far it has been a very close duel between Hirschfeld and Espen Johnsen. The two candidates have so far this winter been playing about equally much in the ten friendlies: Hirschfeld has been guarding the net for five and a half games, while Johnsen has been there for the remaining four and a half. In addition, the last named played the two games against Zenit St. Petersburg. Both have conceded four goals.
For now, Lars Hirschfeld has pulled the longest straw. He will be the main goalkeeper for the season, and will be honing his shape by acting as the last man in the friendlies against IFK Göteborg on Sunday, and against Viking the next Sunday.
The Canadian played very well for Tromsø both in the league and in the UEFA cup last autumn, and was promised a fair fight for the keeper spot when RBK collected him free as a Bosman player before Christmas. The 27-year old is, overall, a very good goalkeeper. Perhaps lacking some of the extreme skills Johnsen posesses, he still compensates by being extremely level-headed, and by communicating well with the defensive line in front of him. In other words, Hirschfeld shall contribute to the security in the back lines, where a lot of uncertainty was witnessed last season.
"He wants clear guidelines on how the keeper and the defence shall cooperate. Lars is a type of goalkeeper that knows what areas he needs to practice in, and he has a clear option on his own skills. It seems that he likes to take responsibility, and that is challenging and educating for the rest of us," keeper coach Jørn Jamtfall tells local Trondheim newspaper Adresseavisa.
And hence, for the first time since his debut season in 2002, Espen Johnsen will be placed on the bench more or less permanently. Together with the third goalkeeper Alexander Lund Hansen he will put pressure on Hirschfeld, 'forcing' him to keep his prestations on a top level.
