Seychelles Volleyball Federation (SVF) Shields |21 March 2011

After defying all the odds stacked against them to burst Premium Spikers’ bubble in last year’s men’s match, Beau Vallon looked on course for a ninth win in the annual encounter, but they came up short this time. They lost the nail-biting match 2-3 after some entertaining play watched by a decent crowd, which included youth and sports principal secretary Denis Rose who presented the winners with the floating shields.

Played between the league and cup winners of the previous season, the SVF Shield matches took place at the La Promenade Gymnasium.

Cascade send early warning

After letting slip a two-set lead to lose 2-3 (26-24, 25-15, 18-25, 25-27, 3-15) against Arsu who won the SVF Shield for a fifth year in a row in 2010, Cascade looked more organised this time despite not having a coach on their bench.

Watching them play, it seemed that player/coach Annie Appasamy had worked her game plan out to perfection as reigning first division league champions Friends could not counter their onslaughts which came from left-handed spiker Marie-Claude Rose and Terille Songoire.

After a tight first set which they won 27-25, Cascade made all the big points and looked at ease in crunch time to claim the other two sets on identical scores of 25-21 to put an end to 63 minutes of play.

This is Cascade’s fifth SVF Shield win after past victories in 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2005, while Friends, coached by Gaetan William, were making their debut in the annual match.

The 3-0 victory is also testimony of Cascade’s intention for the 2011 season and brimming with confidence, captain Rose has started talking about her team going for a clean sweep.

 “We are determined to win all the titles this year,” said Rose
“We have a strong team capable of beating anyone and completing a clean sweep.”

Premium Spikers off to good start

With the same roster as last year, coach Bernard Denis looked to his seasoned generals to carry the battle to Beau Vallon and he punched the air in delight at the final whistle. His team had weathered Beau Vallon’s storm to reclaim the shield from the eight-time winners.

Although captain Jean-Paul Lepathy, who had followed just two training sessions this year, scored the winner, it is Percy Riaze who stole the limelight with a real solid effort in his team’s win.

Off to a slow start after being used as a rapid attacker, Riaze got into his stride when switched into the big man role by coach Denis and his cross-court attacks literally dismantled Beau Vallon’s block marshalled by the Bijoux brothers – Bernard, Benjamin and Gilly, who has re-united with the team after a one-year stint with Racing Club in 2010.

Coming off the bench, evergreen Bernard Bijoux, 43, looked every bit the player who contributed to Seychelles winning its first and only Indian Ocean Island Games gold medal on home soil in 1993. Judging from his playing and maturity level, he deserves a call-up to the pre-selection along with teammate Kishnan Chetty and Premium Spikers captain Lepathy. They can bring some much-needed confidence and experience to the team.

Saturday’s match was played at a very high tempo with the two sets of players battling for every ball on a hard surface and after 103 minutes of exciting play, Premium Spikers won on a 3-2 (25-20, 17-25, 24-26, 25-19, 17-15) score to reclaim the shield, bringing their number of wins to four – in 2003, 2004, 2009 and 2011.

If only the players can maintain this high level of play, volleyball fans are sure to enjoy an interesting 2011 season and captain Lepathy adds: “This is a good start to the season. I’ve seen some good volleyball today with both sets of players giving a good display.

“Although the league will be put on hold during IOIG, I’m sure we will see a very high level of play this year.”

G. G.