Excelsior Out Of Relegation Playoff Zone; Heerenveen Closer To Champions League Playoff Berth; ADO Woes Continue

Three Saturday contests took place in the Dutch Eredivisie:

At Nijmegen:

Andwele Slory scored the game lone goal (39') as Excelsior won on the road, beating NEC Nijmegen 1-0, and climbed out of the relegation-playoff zone.

At Heerenveen:

SC Heerenveen, thanks to a hat trick from Afonso Alves (9', 39', 63'), held off NAC Breda (whose Glen Salmon scored twice, at 29 and 82 minutes) 3-2 to draw within one point of a place in the playoff for a Champions League qualifying berth.

At The Hague:

Sjaak Polak's double (PK-36', 43') helped lead visiting Sparta Rotterdam to a 4-2 doubling of basement occupants ADO Den Haag, crippling the hosts' hopes of staying in the Eredivisie next season.