De Treffers (Netherlands)

De Treffers is an amateur football club from the Gelderland town of Groesbeek in the east of the Netherlands, a few miles southeast of Nijmegen. The club was formed in 1919, around the same time as their biggest rivals, Achilles ’19, on the other side of town, with Jan Piepenbreier appointed as the club's first chairman.

After playing in Nijmegen regional football, De Treffers joined the ranks of the KNVB in 1930. In 1935-36 and 1936-37 the club lifted the eastern region Eerste Klasse championships, going on to compete in the national championships.

Following World War II, De Treffers had a period of struggle as they were relegated on a couple of occasions to find themselves in the Derde, third Klasse. Promotion came thanks to a title win in 1961-62. Back-to-back championships elevated the club to Eerste, first Klasse football in 1962-63.

De Treffers were relegated in 1970-71, but they were promoted at the first attempt. The Hoofdklasse was created in 1974, and De Treffers were placed in the Zondag, Sunday C. The team won their Hoofdklasse title in 1980-81 before finishing runners-up two years later. Further league titles would follow in 1985-86 under trainer Jan Pruijn before his side repeated their feat in 1987-88 and 1989-90. 

In both latter seasons, the club was crowned as Sunday amateur champions, with the 1990 triumph coming against Quick Boys. Ben Gerritsen then took charge of the team for a season, which saw another Hoofdklasse title to add to the honours board. 

The best performances over the ensuing years came when De Treffers finished divisional runners-up in 1994-95 and 1996-97 before trainer, the former Dutch international, Jan Peters, led his side to the title in 1997-98. This triumph led to another national crown as Saturday champions; IJsselmeervogels were defeated in the decider

De Treffers became one of the foremost amateur outfits in the whole of the country. Four consecutive league runners-up places ensued between 1999-00 and 2002-03 as Willie Willems trained the side. Peters had returned for a second spell when the team became Hoofdklasse C champions in 2004-05. 

The forward trio of Rob Zegers, Saïd Echarqui, and Guilliano Grot wreaked havoc on opposing defences. League runners-up places followed for the three successive seasons from 2005-06 to 2007-08 after Guilliano Grot and then Eugène Marijnissen had spells as trainer, while future coach Aleh Putsila contributed goals to the effort.

Putsila was in charge when Hoofdklasse title number eight was won in 2009-10, which took the club to the third national level Topklasse, where the team consolidated their status before finishing third in 2012-13 under coach John Neijenhuis.

The 2014-15 and 2015-16 campaigns ended in fourth-place finishes under the tutelage of Ton Caanen and then Anton Janssen. The latter would be enough to secure a place in the newly formed third-tier Tweede Divisie after the Dutch national league system was restructured.

The elevation meant the club would have to convert away from just Sunday football. Goals from Robert Mutzers and Wesley Meeuwsen helped De Treffers settle into their new surroundings with a fourth place in 2016-17.

The following campaign was more of a struggle before the side recovered to eleventh place in 2018-19 when Jan de Jonge took over as trainer. Lowie van Zundert top-scored as his team ended the prematurely ended 2019-20 campaign in ninth place. François Gesthuizen had a spell in charge of the team before being replaced by Gert Kruys.

Lee-Roy Echteld was appointed as trainer in January 2022, taking the side to fifth place the following season. A runners-up place followed in 2023-24 in the third-tier Tweede Divisie, before Frank van Kouwen had a short spell in charge of the team, before he was succeeded by Edwin Linssen for the 2024-25 season.

A disappointing campaign led to the recruitment of the new De Treffers trainer, Theo Janssen

De Treffers will play in Tweede Divisie in the 2025-26 season.

My visit

Monday 20th January 2014

I found myself in the football-mad town of Groesbeek on a bleak winter's day on the fourth day of a football adventure across the Netherlands. 

Having walked from the home of rivals Achilles ’29 along Hulsbroek and then Nieuwe Drulseweg past an industrial estate and then housing, I saw the floodlights of Sportpark Zuid down Nijerf. The entrance to the ground was at the far end and through a large car park. 

The magnificent club buildings were to be found behind half of the near end of the ground, with a few steps of open terracing in front. The far touchline had a cover for standing spectators, with the roadside a seated stand across the halfway line. 

The rest of the ground had hard standing and grass, with raised advertising boards at the far end offering an enclosed feel to the arena. Originally, I had intended to head for the home of Groesbeeke Boys, but it was time to prioritise as I was feeling the effects of my exertions. 

I needed to get to my evening's destination of Eindhoven as quickly as I could to have a rest before the match. A free small local bus gave me a tour around the houses before dropping me in the town centre, next to where the railway once ran, so I could take a bus back into Nijmegen.