TJ Plzen LItice will meet SK Slavia Prague in the Czechia men’s final with an EHL KO16 spot on the line for the winner while Slavia’s women face HC 1972 Rakovnik for a place in the EHL Women FINAL12.

Reigning champions Litice won their two-legged final against Bohemians thanks to a late burst of goals. They trailed 3-2 after the first leg and were still 4-3 behind on aggregate going into the final quarter of the contest.

That was until Ondřej Sochor scored twice in a minute – with six minutes to go – to turn the game on its head. Eduard Gerlický made extra sure in the closing moments for a 6-4 win on aggregate.

The scorer of the first goal, Adrián Augustinič, was thrilled to get over the line: “We entered the match in an unfavourable situation.

“We were aware of our situation and that’s why we played as simply as possible to create open chances and play as much as possible in their half.

“Towards the end of the third quarter, Bohemians managed to equalise after a controversial goal. We took the lead again in the last quarter thanks to two quick goals and we managed to keep it!”

For Slavia, they went through in more comfortable fashion thanks to a 4-1 win in the first leg against HC Hostivař. It meant they always had the edge in the second leg which ended up 3-3.

“We started the second match knowing that we had a three-goal lead, and maybe that’s why we weren’t fully focused,” said Slavia’s Martin Hanus.

“We went in front three times but they always matched us with a goal with his courageous performance. Although there was no drama, it was an interesting match for the viewer.”

On the women’s side, HC 1972 Rakovnik produced an incredible fightback to reach the decider as they overcame a 4-1 first leg deficit  against HC 1946 Praga.

Two goals each from Anna Vorlová and Klára Hvězdová earned Rakovnik a remarkable 4-0 win in the second leg, edging out their rivals 5-4 in total.

Their goalkeeper Nikola Grazová was thrilled, saying: “I’m very proud of the whole team, we carried the match spirit from the cup to the second semi-final and we went into the match with the understanding that we have nothing to lose and that we will fight for the promotion.

“We knew that the first match didn’t quite work out for us, but the result gave us a kick and we had the motivation to give it back to our opponents.”

For Slavia, they were far more comfortable, beating Hradec Králove 6-0 with a pair of 3-0 wins.

“From the beginning of the match, it was clear at Slávistky that they were going full force into the match. Our goal was to play without mistakes, without fear, and most of all, to enjoy it,” said Eliška Ostatnická.

The finals will take place on June 8 in Litice.

The German men’s champions Mannheimer HC have made three big signings to start off the summer to offset the departure of Teo Hinrichs next season.

Joining the club are Matteo Poljaric, Thomas Habif and Ben Hasbach to strengthen their hand for 2024/25.

Poljaric arrives from Berliner HC having previously been part of the German Under-21 side who won the Junior World Cup.

Habif moves from Harvestehuder THC, joining the club where his sisters Florencia and Agustina have been based for a number of years. He is a current Argentina international with 71 caps, playing in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and scored last week in a win over Ireland in the FIH Pro League.

Ben Hasbach (pictured) is another German rising star, moving from Harvestehuder THC as well. He was also part of the Junior World Cup gold medal when just 17-years-old, scoring two goals in the semi-final win over India.

Before that, he was the top scorer at the Under-18 EuroHockey Championships last summer and also scored in the EHL with an amazing over the head volley for HTHC against Pinoké.

He will study in Mannheim and play for the club as part of a sports scholarship.

Hinrichs – player of the tournament at the 2023 EuroHockey Championships – will move as part of his studies to Barcelona.

SV Kampong won back the Dutch men’s Hoofdklasse title after a six-year gap as they won a dramatic two-legged battle with HC Rotterdam over the weekend.

They nicked the first leg on Saturday with a late Jip Janssen goal to win 2-1. Silas Lageman’s quick hands helped them g in front nice and early in the first quarter but goal machine Jeroen Hertzberger got things level in the third quarter for 1-1.

In the return leg on Sunday in Utrecht, Janssen once again seized the initiative with a corner goal in the fifth minute.

Hertzberger replied with his calm push from the left of the circle this leg at 1-1 before a big goal-swing in the second quarter.

Duco Telgenkamp deflected in a corner move but the effort was disallowed due to a dangerous sliding which also drew a 10-minute yellow card.

In his absence, Rotterdam went in front via Thijs van Dam in the 22nd minute from the right of the circle.

It made it 3-3 on aggregate and it stayed that way before Janssen, once more, popped up with the vital winning goal in 100 seconds remaining – his 24th goal of the campaign.

Kampong advance to next Easter’s EHL Men’s FINAL8 with Rotterdam confirmed for next October’s KO16.

Den Bosch won yet another Dutch women’s national title as Frédérique Matla’s Sunday hat trick propelled them out of sight of SCHC whose wait for a first title continues.

Joosje Burg’s goal three minutes from the end of the first leg on Saturday gave them the edge with a 1-0 win in Bilthoven.

And they carried the momentum into the home leg on Sunday with Matla scoring from the penalty spot after just eight minutes.

SCHC replied quickly via Renee van Laarhoven from a corner to get back into the contest but Den Bosch were further clear when Matla got the perfect deflection for a 2-1 lead in the game and 3-1 overall.

Yibbi Jansen gave Stichtse a lifeline from a corner with 10 minutes to go but, as they pushed for an equaliser without a goalkeeper in place, they were caught cold.

A long Rosa Fernig overhead set Matla through with an open goal in front of her; with time running out, she wound down a few seconds before slotting home what was the crucial final goal.

It earned a 4-2 win on aggregate, making it 22 national titles for Den Bosch since 1998. It also means they will be the number one seed from the Netherlands for the EHL FINAL12 next Easter with SCHC the second seed.