Match preview: Roda JC - Ajax

10 Apr: Even though the last Dutch coal-mines were closed in the 1960s, the southern parts of Holland's most southern province, Limburg, are still called the 'mine districht'. Because of the hills and rocks in the beautiful, shelving landscape, southern Limburg does not look like The Netherlands at all. The coal-mines are still industrious in many folk songs in the regional dialect, and in the stories of the old miners, reminiscing of an era that will never return. But South-Limburg will always be their home and - in most cases - Roda JC is their club.

Yes, Roda is a 'coal-miner's club', and although fans of MVV, from the mundane provincial capital of Maastricht, pronounce those words condescendingly, Roda JC is without any doubt Limburg's number one club, especially now neighbors Fortuna Sittard are about to join MVV and VVV in the First Division, whereas Roda JC is still running for Champions League qualification. The club honors include six European Cup Winners Cup or UEFA Cup campaigns, five Dutch national cup finals, of which the latter two (in 1997 and 2000) were won. Roda's predecessor, Rapid JC, even won the Dutch title once, in 1956.

Indeed: Roda JC was not always named Roda JC. If there's a 'C' in the name of a Dutch football club (RKC, NAC, NEC), prepare for a complex history of 'Combinations'. Roda JC stands for 'Roda Juliana Combination'. For the record: amateur sides Kerkrade (of 1926) and Bleijerheide (of 1914) became Roda Sport in 1954. Juliana (of 1910) and Rapid (of 1954) became Rapid JC in 1954. Roda Sport and Rapid JC, finally, formed Roda JC in 1962. The new-born club promoted to the Eredivisie in 1973, and did not go down since. In 20 out of 26 Eredivisie seasons, the Limburgers finished in the top ten, with the 1995 achievement as a remarkable peak, when Roda JC was the only team not to get defeated by unbeaten national and European champions Ajax (both games ended 1-1).

The yellow and black club has a good home record against the Amsterdammers anyway. Since Roda's promotion to the Eredivisie in 1973, Ajax had 27 league visits to Kerkrade, of which sixteen were not won. Five times, the long busride back to Amsterdam had to be made empty-handed. Last season, Ajax played at old Kaalheide Stadium twice, with a 3-0 league defeat and a 1-0 Amstel Cup elimination as poor results. The home tie at the ArenA was lost as well: 1-2. Moreover: Kaalheide was never Ajax' favorite place to go. The fact that Roda now plays at brand-new Parkstad Limburg Stadium, will not make that much of a difference.

The Amstel Cup holders are having one more fine season. Their 1-3 win at FC Groningen, last weekend, made them fourth, only two points behind Ajax. Easter Monday's confrontation is, therefore, a direct duel for the third position and the right to play Champions League qualification games. An excellent achievement of Roda, since the club saw its topscorer, Belgian giant Bob Peeters, move to Vitesse. His replacement, Greek killer Ioannis Anastasiou, managed to surpass the high expectations. He is third on the Eredivisie topscorer's list, with 17 goals, five more than Ajax' topscorer, Shota Arveladze, six more than his countryman, Nikos Machlas.

The people of Limburg are known for their generosity and hospitality. Roda JC put over a thousand tickets to Ajax' availability, which means there'll be a large red and white legion to encourage Ajax. The team will need it, because Easter Monday is D-Day, if Ajax wants to keep the chances for Champions League qualification in their own hands. If they lose, Roda leapfrogs Ajax, providing RKC the chance to push Adriaanse's team back to fifth. If Ajax thinks they're good enough for the Champions League, this is the time to prove it. (MP)