Jesse Postma on his debut against Meerkerk: "Quite an introduction"
Last season Jesse Postma was still playing in the Overgangsklasse with Wit-Blauw in Kampen. In the Korfbal League opener he immediately faced Gertjan Meerkerk of DVO for DOS '46. "Quite an introduction to the League, too", the 23-year-old tells KORFBALINC.
Automatically translated from Dutch. Read the Dutch original.
- Postma prepared with footage of Meerkerk.
- DOS '46 approached him at the end of the indoor season.
- With his team he is aiming for 6th place.
DOS '46 won that opener 27‑28 in Bennekom on Friday 6 November, in a packed hall. "Those are matches you don't always get to experience when you play in the Overgangsklasse yourself", says Postma.
A debut, and against the national champion at that, was something he dreamed of as a little boy. "When I used to watch the League, I thought: I'd like to do that myself one day. That it has now become reality is of course incredibly cool."
Footage of Meerkerk
The newcomer was immediately given the task of defending Meerkerk. "That is of course a big test for me straight away." At Wit-Blauw he also often marked the opponent's strikers.
Read more: DOS '46 win opener at DVO: Zwolle decides it with two long shots (27‑28)
Beforehand, Postma watched footage of Meerkerk: how he moves, what kind of moves he makes and where he scores from most. "What I thought was really cool is that the coaches trusted me with that task, as a newcomer."
Still in the first half, DOS '46 brought on Luc Hulzebosch for him. In the closing stages Postma returned, to defend Menno van der Neut.
A message from DOS '46
The move came unexpectedly for Postma. He started at ASVD in Dronten and became captain of Wit-Blauw. There, things turned out differently at the end of the indoor season: at first the team was competing for the title. "So that was a big letdown. But then all of a sudden I got a message from DOS '46, asking whether I wanted to sit down and talk about my ambitions."
After a few conversations he made his choice fairly quickly. "I saw this as a great opportunity to keep developing myself, to see where I would eventually end up."
Every mistake punished
The first weeks were mainly about getting used to the level of resistance: he came from the Overgangsklasse, three levels lower. "It goes much faster", says Postma. "The players are a lot quicker and I also notice straight away that every mistake I made was immediately punished."
By now he pays more conscious attention to how his opponent moves, how he can disrupt him and how best to serve his zone. Coaches and teammates help him with that, and he gets a lot of feedback. "I'm getting a lot of new information, which I try to absorb like a sponge."
Target: 6th place
He never expected League minutes when he joined DOS '46. "We'll eventually see where the ship runs aground or keeps sailing, I don't know that yet."
For the team the bar is set at 6th place, "just like last year". "Anything above that is just a bonus, but we are mainly focused on 6th place."
DOS '46 host Fortuna on Sunday 15 November.