Men's NVL Firsts Vs. Nottingham Rockets
Sunday 14th January 2007
Nottingham are a tall side, who have three strong hitters, but had lost a lot of games this season, so morale seemed low. With UoBs strongest six playing almost all the first match, this was a good opportunity to give our bench a time to show what they have.
Ronald replaced Grant as a wing hitter, Kieron replaced Bertrand through the middle, Christian replaced Thegan as an opposite hitter, and Pete replaced Graham as the setter. The first set was a close affair, but with strong hits from Sascha and Ronald, the set went UoBs way. The second set was very much the same, with points going either way throughout. Kieron was brought off midway for Bertrand to help in the blocking of Nottingham’s big hitters, however it wasn't enough, and Nottingham took the second set.
The third set began how UoB finished, with Bertrand remaining on the court in place of Kieron, and with Christian making way for Thegan. Powerful hits from Sascha and Ronald kept the points coming and some very clever hitting from Thegan allowed UoB to gain a small lead. Nottingham fought back and it allowed Pete to demonstrate why he was a libero last season. Fast and agile, he ran around the court making some vital pick ups. As consequence UoB edged out the third set.
The fourth set was again, a very close affair. The game wasn't pretty, but UoB dug in and took away the fourth set from a battling Nottingham. Ronald received a very well deserved Man of the Match for some fine hitting.
Match Facts
Competition: EVA National League Division IIIN.
Played: Away.
Result: Won 3-1.
Set Scores: 22-25, 25-23, 18-25, 21-25.