Brilliant Stefanie van der Gragt Waves off After ‘Rollercoaster’

This article was last updated on August 11, 2023

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Brilliant Stefanie van der Gragt Waves off After ‘Rollercoaster’: ‘She Deserves a Statue’

She clumsily caused a penalty and saved the Orange with a great long shot in stoppage time. Nevertheless, the quarter-final against Spain was the last game of her career for Stefanie van der Gragt. According to national coach Andries Jonker, she deserves a statue.

Van der Gragt rubs the tears from her eyes. The pain is still fresh with the defender, about twenty minutes after the elimination against Spain. ‘Stalen Steef’ looks affected for the first time this World Cup. “What a rollercoaster this was,” she sighs.

Van der Gragt’s Last Game

Van der Gragt was never concerned with the approaching end of this World Cup. But when the ball clumsily fell on her arm in the 80th minute and the referee awarded a penalty for Spain, she couldn’t help but think. “Isn’t it? This isn’t going to happen to me in my last game, is it?”

And Van der Gragt got up after Spain’s 0-1, as she did more often in her career. She was sent forward like a battering ram. And then in the 91st minute she got the ball at her feet for the first time.

“I thought: all I have to do now is score. I don’t have to dribble again. I just shoot.” It was no ordinary shot. It was a shot for the history books. With her right leg she bowled the ball into the far corner. Orange rose again, while it was dead and buried.

Van der Gragt thus extended her career with an extension. She didn’t fill it completely, because she was “empty” halfway through. From the bench and with her hands in front of her eyes, she watched as Spain struck in the 111th minute and ended her career after 107 caps.

‘Stalen Steef’ Played Her Best Tournament

Afterwards, it was mainly the elimination that hurt Van der Gragt and not the end of her career. “I don’t want to think about that yet. Disappointment prevails. Whether there is pride? Maybe tomorrow. Or when I’m home.”

As wry as it sounds after the elimination: Van der Gragt stopped at her peak. The 2017 European champion played the best tournament of her career, even if she was a bit less in the quarterfinals against Spain.

Van der Gragt won all her duels, was in between everything and showed herself to be the unyielding leader of the defense. After her winning header in the first World Cup match against Portugal, national coach Jonker came up with the nickname ‘Steel Steef’.

Jonker could not have come up with a better nickname. Van der Gragt could not be defeated by setbacks. There were plenty of them in her career, which took her from Telstar to Ajax and FC Barcelona, ​​among others.

Van der Gragt was often injured. It was even questionable whether she could play the World Cup due to another serious injury. She had to miss the last matches of her club Internazionale. She also became ill during the tournament.

Jonker Thinks She Deserves a Statue

But Van der Gragt was there when it had to be. She never thought about her farewell tour, she emphasized again and again. Not in Zeist, not in Australia and not in New Zealand either. That would only distract her from her mission with the Orange: to become world champion.

Jonker reminded Van der Gragt of Rinus Israël, the iconic defender of Feyenoord from the golden seventies: tough and unyielding. Van der Gragt is also a type of ‘actions speak louder than words’.

Jonker therefore mourns her farewell. “These kinds of defenders disappear in modern football. Her mentality, her attitude, her fighting spirit, but also physically: she is strong with the head, strong with the feet, every tackle is a hit. She is not the best player in the world, but maybe one of the best defenders in the world.”

“She has shown that in over a hundred games. She deserves a statue. If you want to take a picture of the will to win, take a picture of her. We respect her decision to retire, but she is welcome if she changes her mind.”

Van der Gragt’s Future

Van der Gragt will soon start as technical manager of the AZ women’s team. As a result, she can see her two children grow up more closely, which is exactly the reason why she quits after years abroad. But she didn’t want to think about that either. “I’m so sad that we didn’t make it through. That will come later.”