Volleyball: Divisional Cup |03 July 2023
ST LOUIS BOMBERS … Women division two winners (Photo: Neil Sirame)
City Ladies, Premium Spikers, Airwaves, St Louis Bombers champions
The scene for this year’s Seychelles Volleyball Federation Divisional Cup finals had been set since the previous week and last Saturday, the Palais des Sports hosted the four matches won by City Ladies (women division one), St Louis Bombers (women division two), Premium Spikers (men division one) and Airwaves (men division two).
Youth and sports principal secretary Ralph Jean-Louis, Seychelles Volleyball Federation (SVF) chairman Ronald Wong and vice-chairman Franky Hetimier presented the cups.
City Ladies outsmart Mont Fleuri
In their bid to win a first Divisional Cup in the women’s top flight, Mont Fleuri could not match City Ladies in the final, losing 1-3.
Mont Fleuri started stronger winning the first set 25-23, but City Ladies came back for the second set more reorganised in their play and they won it 25-16 to tie the match at one set apiece.
City Ladies continued on this same momentum to grab the third set 25-15 and as Mont Fleuri completely lost the focus in the fourth, the players of coach Julien Onezime capitalised their opponents’ weaknesses to win it 25-18 and the match 3-1.
Speaking to Sports NATION, City Ladies coach Onezime said his team showed a lot of good quality in the final.
“The match went well overall and in our favour even though we started slow and lost the first set. I sensed that Mont Fleuri had given their all in the first set, so we patiently overcame them with some powerful plays to take control of the game,” said coach Onezime.
According coach Onezime, their preparation for the final went well and he added that they had a good campaign to earn them their fifth trophy since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
As for Mont Fleuri head coach Adolf Nalletamby, he expressed that his team had done well in the final and have improved significantly since joining the big ranks in 2016, adding that they have reached three finals.
“When I started with Mont Fleuri we were weaker, but now we have grown over the years and with new experienced players coming in, our team’s depth is developing further,” said coach Nalletamby.
Premium Spikers men’s division one champs
In the men’s division one final, well-known Premium Spikers whitewashed Neo Boys 3-0 (25-20, 25-21, 25-22).
Neo Boys tried to apply the pressure to their opponents in the first set, but they just could not outscore Premium Spikers.
With former professional and Seychelles international Ian Furneau in their ranks, Premium Spikers displayed some quality performance in both attack and defence to keep their opponents at bay.
Speaking to Sports NATION, Premium Spikers head coach Didier Dugasse said they are satisfied with the result and added that they enjoyed a good campaign in the tournament which bodes well ahead of the league competition.
“We did not receive strong resistance from Neo Boys and I am satisfied with the overall performance of the team. At times we even let Neo Boys catch up with us with their high tempo style of play,” said coach Dugasse.
The Premium Spikers head coach stated that the team stayed positive through the match as they were well prepared. He concluded saying they had a good campaign as they only lost one set against Praslin team Brotherhood across the whole tournament.
St Louis Bombers and Airwaves triumph in lower division
The women’s division two final played on the secondary court at the Palais de Sport was between Constance Ephelia and St Louis Bombers.
The Bombers won the final on a 3-0 (25-15, 26-24, 25-18) score, leaving Constance Ephelia in disbelief.
On the other hand, Airwaves won their first Divisional Cup after they were stretched to five sets by Anse Royale before winning 3-2.
Airwaves secured the first and second sets 25-23 and 25-21, but Anse Royale stepped up their play to capture the third and fourth sets 25-23 and 25-15 to force a decisive fifth set. In the end, Airwaves won the fifth set 25-15.
Neil Sirame
