Tim Krul proved to be the hero in a penalty shoot-out as AZ Alkmaar saw off Cambuur and booked a meeting with Vitesse in the KNVB Cup final.
Cambuur had already seen off Ajax and Utrecht in previous rounds and were hoping for another upset on Thursday as they travelled to out of sorts AZ Alkmaar.
As expected AZ dominated from the start but they struggled to find space in the Cambuur defence and were reduced to only a handful of chances in the first half.
After the break, Cambuur nearly took the lead through Jergé Hoefdraad, who forced Tim Krul into a fine save. Krul then set off a counter which ended with Fred Friday blazing over a great chance. As the half wore on AZ applied more pressure and eventually, they found the net in the 93rd minute, but the video referee ruled out Stijn Wuytens goal for a foul on the goalkeeper.
Extra-time followed but neither side could find a winning goal and just before the end AZ were reduced to ten men when Rens van Eijden saw red. The penalty shoot-out saw AZ and Cambuur both miss two each before Wout Weghorst confidently slotted his in to put the pressure on Cambuur. Martijn Barto stepped up but his spot kick was saved by Tim Krul, who after his World Cup heroics v Costa Rica in 2014, was again a hero at penalties.
AZ will now face Vitesse Arnhem in the KNVB Cup final at De Kuip.