(Story by Marco Stoovelaar; Photos by Henk Seppen & Marco Stoovelaar)
 Dè Flanegin new Head Coach of HCAW
Nederlands
 BUSSUM (Neth.) -
Dè Flanegin is the new Head Coach of the big league-team of HCAW, the club officially announced on Friday (November 30).
Flanegin succeeds Roeland Henrique, who stepped down after completion of the season after having informed the club of his decision towards the end of August.
Rudy Dirksen, who was the 3B Coach of Henrique, will remain in the coaching-staff of the Bussum-club.
In a few days, Flanegin and Dirksen will begin the indoor-practices with HCAW to prepare for the 2019 season.
...Dè Flanegin...
...new Head Coach HCAW...
(© Photo: Marco Stoovelaar) |
Flanegin's name already was rumored for several weeks in combination with HCAW.
However, the club confirmed that talks with Flanegin started only after November 15, which was the deadline for players to change clubs.
After the season, the club initially looked around for possible coaching candidates, but then focused on its players instead, as that had to be settled before November 15.
Thereafter, the search for a new coach continuued.
With his appointment as Head Coach, Dè Flanegin returns to the field after an one-year absence.
In 2016 and 2017, Flanegin was the Head Coach of Hoofddorp Pioniers, the club where he had been associated with his entire career.
HCAW was the last of five big league-teams who had to name a new Head Coach for the upcoming season.
Remarkably enough, six of the eight teams will start in 2019 with another Head Coach than this year.
Besides Roeland Henrique, four other Head Coaches also stopped at their respective clubs, being Jerry Breek (DSS), Kevin Knollenburg (De Glaskoning Twins), Charles Urbanus (L&D Amsterdam Pirates) and Marco Wels (Cityside Apartments Quick Amersfoort).
During the season, in July, Youri Visser already had succeeded Aldric Dunlop as Head Coach of Silicon Storks.
In the first weeks after completion of the season, three vacancies were already filled in, as Jeffrey Arends took over at Twins (September 9), Marco Wels became the Head Coach of DSS (September 19) and Glenn Romney was named at Quick Amersfoort (September 27).
A month later (October 20), L&D Amsterdam Pirates announced that Brian Finnegan will be its new Head Coach in 2019.
With that, only Ronald Jaarsma (Curaçao Neptunus) and Mervin Gario (Meerlease Pioniers) are the returning Head Coaches on Opening Day 2019.
Aruba-born Dè Flanegin, who will turn 47 next month, first played for Hoofddorp Pioniers in 1992, when the team played in the First Division.
In that year, Pioniers promoted to the Dutch big league.
From that year on, Flanegin played in the main squad of the Hoofddorp-club in the highest division through 2008.
He then returned againin 2010 and played in five more seasons for Pioniers.
In total, he played in 22 seasons for the club, 21 of them at the highest level.
In his long career, Flanegin recorded 885 basehits and is one of only eight players in history to have hit 800 or more basehits at the highest level.
...Dè Flanegin while coaching at Pioniers...
(© Photo: Henk Seppen) |
As outfielder and later first baseman and designated hitter, the righthanded hitter was a core player of Pioniers, with whom he won the Dutch championship-title in 1997.
This was the lone championship-title the club has won.
On May 12, 2013, Flanegin became the recordholder for most games played in the Dutch big league for a single club, breaking the record of 691 games played, set by Jurjan Koenen (HCAW).
Flanegin retired after the 2014 season, having participated in a record-total of 750 games for one single club at the highest level.
On August 31 of that year, he played his last game for Pioniers.
In that game, which was a Play-Off match-up vs. Kinheim, Flanegin played in all nine positions, closing as a pitcher.
On July 5, 2015, his uniform number 30 was officially retired by Pioniers.
In the early nineties, Dè Flanegin also played several games in the highest Dutch Men Softball League, playing for Antillian Stars in Utrecht.
In 2015, Flanegin was one of the coaches of the Men Softball Team of Pioniers.
In 2016, Dè Flanegin made his debut as Head Coach in the big league.
However, it was not his debut as a coach.
In 2008 and 2010, while still playing himself, he also was the Hitting Coach of Pioniers.
In June 2010, Pioniers and then-Head Coach Bernie Beckman separated.
His three Assistant Coaches Peter Barentsen, Theo Geerman and Dè Flanegin then formed a trio that jointly led the team, but Geerman was the Head Coach.
In his first season as Head Coach of Pioniers, the team finished in third place in the Overall Standings of the Dutch big league with a 27-15 record.
The team finished in second place in the second half to qualify for the Championship Round.
In this Play-Off Round, Pioniers was eliminated for the Holland Series.
In 2017, Pioniers finished in a tie for third place with HCAW with a 20-14 record and two ties.
Based on the head-to-head results between the two teams, Pioniers finished fourth, but the team again qualified for the Championship Round, which had an 18-game schedule instead of the nine in the previous season.
Again, Pioniers finished in third place and was eliminated for the Final.
After the season, Flanegin was succeeded as Head Coach by Mervin Gario, who led the team this year as a playing coach.
This year, HCAW finished in third place in the regular season with a 21-18 record and three ties to reach the Championship Round for the second year in a row.
Last year, HCAW qualified for the postseason for the first time since 2005.
(November 30)
Related Articles:
 Brian Finnegan new Head Coach Amsterdam Pirates. (October 20)
Charles Urbanus steps down as Head Coach Amsterdam Pirates. (October 7)
Glenn Romney named Head Coach of Quick Amersfoort. (September 28)
Jeffrey Arends new Head Coach of Twins. (September 28)
Marco Wels named new Head Coach of DSS. (September 19)
Kevin Knollenburg confirms stopping as Head Coach of Twins. (September 13)
Marco Wels steps down as Head Coach of Quick Amersfoort. (September 12)
HCAW Head Coach Roeland Henrique steps down after season. (September 7)
DSS Head Coach Jerry Breek confirms stepping down. (September 6)
|
