In the previous matchday programme, the editors built up immense anticipation: FC Groningen was sitting on 999 home goals in the Eredivisie, and the next player to score at the Euroborg would achieve statistical immortality. Pages 18 and 21 of the March 9 edition against Feyenoord confirm that the script was executed flawlessly by the man wearing the number 10 shirt.

On page 21, the “Match Facts” section officially records the milestone under the header “DUIZENDSTE THUISGOAL EREDIVISIE” (Thousandth Eredivisie Home Goal). It confirms that Tjaronn Chery was the maker of the historic goal during the 1-1 draw against SC Cambuur. The text adds a poetic touch: “He was two weeks earlier also the maker of the 999th goal.” Chery had essentially set up his own historic milestone and then knocked it down himself.

The fans immediately recognized the weight of his contribution. Flipping back to page 18, the “Essent Speler van het Jaar” results show that Chery won the Man of the Match SMS vote for that Cambuur game with 31% of the votes, comfortably beating Género Zeefuik and Marco Bizot. The photo shows him holding the flowers, cementing his status as the undisputed creative leader of the squad.

A Look into the Future

Scoring the 1,000th home goal permanently etched Tjaronn Chery‘s name into the FC Groningen history books, but it was just one chapter in his stellar northern career. He would go on to be the driving force behind the club’s 2015 KNVB Cup victory before embarking on a highly lucrative international career. Today, whenever the club approaches a new goalscoring milestone, the trivia question of “Who scored the 1,000th?” is always answered with Chery’s name, proving that he delivered exactly what he promised when he signed for the club.