IF TROY PARROTT thinks he is a million miles away from Tottenham Hotspur and the Premier League during his latest loan spell, that is because Excelsior Rotterdam probably feels like it is.
A dramatic weekend in Dutch football also highlights the stark contrasts within the Eredivisie.
On Saturday, the Republic of Ireland international netted a sublime first goal for Excelsior in a 3-0 away win over Heerenveen, a result that saw the club with an annual budget of €8.5 million, the smallest in the country’s top flight, move into seventh place after six games.
It's a night to remember for Irish sport 🇮🇪⚽🔥
— Kenny's Kids (@KennysKids) September 23, 2023
(Troy Parrott has scored his first Eredivisie goal in belting style!) ☘️#COYBIGpic.twitter.com/MQ5fVYoUYa
Less than 24 hours later and the derby between Ajax and Feyenoord, the highest-profile fixture in the Netherlands, was abandoned when home fans peppered the Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam with flares and fireworks while their team trailed 3-0 to their bitter rivals.
Afterwards, footage emerged on social media of different parts of the stadium being vandalised with people smashing through glass doors and windows.
A statement from police reported by ESPN also confirmed that “rioting supporters forcibly entered the main entrance and pelted the Mobile Unit (ME) with stones.”
Ajax are now considering legal action against the Dutch football federation (KNVB) after ordering the remainder of the game, which was stopped after 55 minutes, to be played behind closed doors on Wednesday.
Never mind the Premier League, this all feels a world away from Parrott’s current environment at the Stadion Woudestein in the peaceful borough of Kralingen in the east of Rotterdam.
With a capacity of 4,400, they are comfortably the city’s smallest professional club behind Feyenoord and Sparta Rotterdam – who Excelsior host this Sunday.
For some perspective, the attendance of 4,139 for the 2-2 draw with Fortuna Sittard on 26 August, when Parrott made his debut off the bench, would be comparable to the League of Ireland.
Shamrock Rovers, St Patrick’s Athletic, Bohemians, Shelbourne and Sligo Rovers have all had more than that amount through their turnstiles at least once this season.
Even First Division champions Galway United had 4,300 at Eamonn Deacy Park for a league game with Cobh Ramblers back in April.
“It is the kind of place, I don’t want to say very rich people, but it is a very nice club and the only club in Rotterdam where you will also see people [at matches] who like field hockey,” Wout Fassbender, a sports reporter with the city’s Algemeen Dagblad newspaper, tells The 42.
His colleague, Michael Kerkhof, is a boyhood supporter who also now covers the club.
“Ten years ago you had maybe 2,000 to 2,500 and last year there were around 3,500. Now it’s up to 4-4,400,” he explained, speaking before last weekend’s events.
“It is a little family club. I call it a big amateur club, it’s professional but everything is just normal, you know everyone [at the club]. There are no hooligans, that’s not Excelsior.”
Fan violence is an issue that has plagued the country and in March the police union stated an outright ban on away supporters attending games was on the horizon.
Indeed, the abandoned Ajax-Feyenoord game on Sunday was the result of new protocols introduced by KNVB after Davy Klassen was left with a bloodied head when he was struck by an object during a cup semi-final between the two sides just one month after the police union warning.
“You can visit [Excelsior] with children, there is nothing strange, there are no hooligans, there is no police. It’s like a normal football club 20 or 30 years ago,” Kerkhof continued.
This is Parrott’s fifth loan spell away from Spurs, and the first outside of England having been at Millwall, Ipswich Town, MK Dons and most recently Preston North End. A serious hamstring injury hampered his progress there, and under the guidance of Excelsior boss Marinus Dijkhuizen he will be given the chance to shine.
“Excelsior is a club that gives young players opportunities,” Fassbender added, although legendary Dutch striker Robin van Persie left the academy in his early teens to join Feyenoord.
“They are never going to spend €1 million on a player, they want special ones they can develop or talented ones to revive their careers as well. The manager is relaxed, he is a quiet man who knows how to get through to players.
“He strives for a good atmosphere. Two weeks ago at training they finished with a game at the end, a silly one with three or four teams and the only way you could score was with a header. I asked him about it and he said it was important to have fun, creating that atmosphere is important for him.”
Dijkhuizen was briefly in charge of Brentford in 2015 having been poached from Excelsior but after just a few months at the helm was relieved of his duties. He suffered the same fate when he returned to the Netherlands for roles at NAC Breda and SC Cambuur.
He secured promotion to the Eredivisie in his second stint with Excelsior and also kept them in the top flight against the odds.
“He wants to connect with his players,” Fassbender added. “If they make mistakes they will hear from him, but he knows they are part of the game and that the players have to learn.”
Parrott is finding out the same. “People don’t know about him, he’s a mystery for everybody here,” Fassbender said.
The Dubliner’s goal at the weekend was a welcome introduction.
