KZN clean up at National Senior Men’s Volleyball
KZN volleyball coach Jason Govender beamed with pride when his charges beat Limpopo at the Senior Mens’ final at the Tempe Military Base in Bloemfontein on Sunday.
KZN triumphed in straight sets 25-14; 25-20 and 25-18.
Govender said his team went into the tournament as underdogs as some of the province’s big-name players had relocated to Gauteng, while some of the local stalwarts could not make the trip because of work commitments.
Undeterred, Govender still moulded a defensively strong unit whose performance was consistent, clinical and organised.
“Not having a recognised setter… I (used) a two-setter system, with attackers Quwin Naidoo and Shaldon Moodley drafted in to service an attack force of Devin O’Regan, Sandile Khoza, Ruwellan Pillay and Hinseh Parbhoo,” said Govender.
KZN powered their way through the round robin stage, defeating their opponents in straight sets.
In their semi-final clash, South Africa’s U23 team’s hopes of gold medals were cut short when KZN bundled them out 25-21; 25-20; 25-17.
In the first semi-final, dark horses Limpopo won by 3 sets to 2 in a breathtaking encounter against favourites Gauteng, recording a nailbiting 15-13 scoreline in the 5th set.
In the televised men’s final, Limpopo struggled to get the upper hand against a fast-paced KZN team that romped home by a cracking 25-14 margin in the opening set.
Making a few changes to their game plan saw the team from the north then surge into the lead, which they maintained up to 19 points.
While Govender felt that his team was not in any danger of losing the set, he called a crucial timeout to instruct his players to close proceedings.
Attackers O’Regan, Naidoo and Khoza put the set beyond Limpopo with a 25-20 scoreline.
With the race to the winner’s podium firmly in their sights, Govender’s boys silenced Limpopo with a crushing 25-18 score to register a 3-0 victory.
While makeshift setter Shaldon Moodley picked up the best setter award, Quwin Naidoo’s superb all-round performance earned him the best blocker and most valuable player accolades.
Limpopo’s former SA U23 player, Nataniel Rafapa was the tournament’s best attacker.
In the women’s final, Gauteng triumphed over SAPS (3-0), and KZN Junior men beat Limpopo (3-0). The KZN senior women’s team ended up in fifth position.