Crefelder HTC celebrated just their second German men’s Bundesliga title – and first since 2006 – as they came from a goal down to defeat Rot-Weiss Köln in the final today in front of their home fans.

It followed Saturday’s 4-2 win over regular season champions Hamburger Polo Club in the semi-finals while Rot-Weiss defeated Mannheimer HC in a shoot-out.

In front of a 3,400 full house,  Köln had hit the front in the first half  when Florian Adrian got on the end of a pass from Michel Struthoff for a 28th minute lead.

Crefeld fought back in the second half and were level when Masi Pfandt’s shot got by Jean Danneberg and they were in front when Lucas Bachmann showed his instincts in front of goal to fire in from close range.

And the game was won in the 51st minute with Bachmann once again the man on the scene for a 3-1 lead.

It completed an astonishing 18th successive win for Crefeld who initially had a disastrous start to the season, losing five of their first six games.

The MVP of the Final4 also came from the new champions. CHTC defender Julius Hayner received the special award.

Crefeld awaits for the Bundesliga finals weekend with the battle to be crowned German champions set to be decided over the weekend.

The action begins on Saturday morning with regular season winners Mannheimer HC coming up against Harvestehuder THC at 11.45. It follows last week’s quarter-finals in which MHC had few problems dismissing UHC Hamburg over two legs while HTHC defeated Rot-Weiss Köln 2-1 and 3-0.

Düsseldorf went through with two wins over Berliner HC and now face Grossflotbeker THGC who upset the odds with a three-leg victory over third ranked De Club an der Alster. That second semi-final is at 14.00.

On the men’s side, things went much closer to the form guide. Hamburger Polo Club topped the regular season table and duly defeated Uhlenhorst Mülheim 8-1 and 5-1.

They will be favourites against Crefelder HTC who will be hoping to use the motivation from their home crowd in the semi-final (16.15) on Saturday. CHTC had a big battle with Harvestehuder THC, winning the first leg in a shoot-out and then 5-3 in the second leg.

They will be followed on pitch by second ranked Mannheimer HC against third placed Rot-Weiss Köln at 18.30. Manmheim went the difference against UHC Hamburg, winning the deciding third leg 4-1 while Rot-Weiss were too strong for TSV Mannheim.

The final will be played on Sunday with all games set to be broadcast on DYN Sport.

AH&BC Amsterdam won the Dutch men’s title for the first time since 2012 as they went the distance to beat SV Kampong in a shoot-out.

Kampong had extended their first leg lead in the opening half when Jip Janssen powered home a penalty corner, making it 5-3 on aggregate.

But the game turned in rapid fashion in the third quarter when Boris Burkhardt nailed a low corner shot and then, within a few minutes, Floris Middendorp’s brilliant run ended with Dayaan Cassiem deflecting in for 2-1.

That made it 5-5 in total, leading to a dramatic shoot-out which went to the seventh round where, fittingly, Burkhardt was the man to score the crucial goal and spark huge celebrations at the Wagener Stadium.

The result means AH&BC Amsterdam advance to next Easter’s EHL Men’s FINAL8 with SV Kampong going to the KO16 in October.

Den Bosch held their nerve to once again win the Dutch women’s championship ahead of SCHC, earning a spot in next year’s EHL FINAL8 into the bargain.

In front of a sold out home crowd, they made the dream start to the second leg with Rosa Fernig striking home from a penalty corner in the sixth minute.

SCHC fought back and made a series of great chances before Elzemiek Zandee finished off following a flurry of action in the Den Bosch circle.

That made it 1-1 in the game and 2-2 on aggregate before half-time and that is how it remained all the way to the final whistle, leading to a shoot-out.

There, Josine Koning kept out two SCHC efforts, allowing Charlotte Englebert to brilliantly volley home a rebound from her shoot-out and win the day and a 23rd national title.

Both Dutch finals will be played in front of sold out audiences on Thursday afternoon as the battle for the national title reaches its denouement.

AH&BC Amsterdam will be looking to overturn a 4-3 deficit against SV Kampong at the Wagener Stadium in the men’s final following a rollercoaster at the Klapperboom.

A late Boris Burkhardt stroke has Amsterdam back in range after the Utrecht side had built a 4-2 advantage with time running out in the first leg, putting the contest right back in the balance.

All 6,600 tickets were snapped up earlier this week for the second leg which takes place at 15.00 (CET).

The women’s final is even closer with the first leg ending 1-1 after SCHC’s Maud van den Heuvel cancelled out Pien Sanders’ opening goal in the first leg in Bilthoven.

Den Bosch will enjoy home advantage with the 4,700 tickets on offer now all taken up as they look to retain the crown. Their battle will be at 12.45 CET and is live on nos.nl.

CAM92 and Saint Germain are confirmed as the French EHL Men’s qualifiers after the latter joined the regular season champions in next weekend’s championship final.

Saint Ger produced a great 3-0 win on Saturday to take the advantage against Polo Marcq-en-Baroeul, Owen Jeammot, Jules Verrier and Hugo Verrier giving them a healthy start.

Polo won the second leg in a 3-2 outcome with Victor Charlet among their scorers but strikes from Blaise Rogeau and another from Jules Verrier gave the Parisians the overall advantage.

For CAM92, they were 8-3 semi-final aggregate winners over Lille MHC with Corentin Sellier scoring on the double in the first leg with further strikes from Louis Poupee and Gabin Lorrazuri.

Matteo Desgouillons scored a hat trick in the second leg on Sunday in a 4-2 success to win both legs with a healthy gap in the final reckoning.

The final will take place on Sunday, June 1st.