Volleyball teams limber up
WHEN the Eastern Cape withdrew as host of the 2017 Champions Cup, KwaZulu-Natal seized the opportunity to afford their teams “home turf” advantage for Volleyball South Africa’s premier national inter-club championship for men and women.
Representing KZN at this year’s event, scheduled to beat the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Westville Campus Sports Centre from April 26 to 30, are Liberte, Durban University of Technology, UKZN, Maidstone, Titans, KSST, Falcons, PMBVC and Kuvuki (men) and UKZN and PMBVC (women).
As hosts of the 2016 Champions Cup, KZN’s leading men’s team from Tongaat, Liberte, defeated Quantum of Johannesburg in a breathtaking fiveset final (21-25; 25-15; 25-23; 24-26; 15-11) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. This was the second time a team from KZN lifted the coveted Champions Cup since its inception in 2000 when Liberte ascended the podium as the tournament’s inaugural gold medallists.
While there’s every indication that Liberte will be among the medallists, their gold medal position is under serious threat from the Western Cape outfits, University of Western Cape and the youthful All Star Saints. According to UWC head coach, Loet Groenewald, his charges have been hard at training to seek revenge against Liberte for their five-set (17-25; 26-24; 25-19; 20-25; 15-12) quarter-final defeat at last year’s event in Durban.
“We have beefed up our defence at the net and worked on quick hitting strategies to pulverise our opponents on the way to the podium as this year’s winners, ”said Groenewald.
The slick Vaal University of Technology’s men’s team coached by Teboho Mofokeng, a former SA Men’s team assistant coach, have made their intentions quite clear. It’s “their time” to walk away with the Champions Cup title for the first time.
“I will be counting on SA under 23 national team setter, Khutso Mamabolo to turn on the magic with his trademark sublime setting that will fire up VUT’s attack force led by the hard-hitting left-handed Mthokozisi Mndingi, while our new signing from Botswana, Nkhwinya Nelson, will take care of matters at the net. The tall middle blocker is a regular in the Botswana national team.”
Unfazed by the inter-provincial rivalry, the 2016 bronze medallists Durban University of Technology, led by their classy playmaker Sholen Govender, will be a team to be reckoned with as they have the experience, quality and depth on the bench to win gold at this level of competition.
This year’s women’s competition will once again be a two-team contest between the star-studded University of Western Cape and Vaal University of Technology.
UWC are confident that they will triumph again over their Gauteng counterpart who they decisively defeated in straight sets (3-0) in last year’s final.
The competition’s top two teams in the men’s and women’s categories will book their place in the African Continental Inter-Club Championship scheduled for later in the year. Veteran Maidstone Volleyball Club setter, Ryaan Lahldas, is ready for action at this year’s Champions Cup scheduled to take place at UKZN’s Sports Centre (Westville campus) from April 26 to 30.