-1

Third Super Cup for Al Arabi

salhetmi 2016-10-15 • 2317 views
 
Third Super Cup for Al Arabi

Holders Al Arabi Club gave glimpses of their rich form and resources when they completed a hat-trick of the Super Cup against Al Rayyan Club with a 3-0 victory on Friday.

At their home court, Al Arabi, the runners-up in the Asia Clubs Championship in Myanmar in August, produced a fluent mix of serve, attack and defence and posted a dominant 25-17 25-13 25-19 triumph in one hour and 10 minutes.

This was the third time in a row that Al Arabi Club defeated the rivals to win the Super Cup, a one-off match event played between the QVA League and Emir Cup winners of the previous season. Last year, Al Arabi had won both the titles but Al Rayyan Club earned the right to play the event as they were runners-up in the League.

Lajnef commented after the match,”The result is important but equally important is how you do the things. That way, our victory was quite special. We put in a remarkable performance. All the players tried to contribute best to their level.

“This was the second match for us in three days. I wasn’t sure if all the players would be 100 percent today. But by God’s grace, they lifted their game against our old rivals Al Rayyan, put pressure on them and won the match.”

Talking about his team’s high point, the Al Arabi coach said,”Service is one area where we have been focusing hard this season. We really served well to put a lot of pressure on their inside out. As a result, they could not make points. The going has been good so far and we’ll try to continue this.”

Juma Faraj, an experienced player and captain Al Arabi commented,”The match against Al Rayyan Club is never easy. We are capable of playing a high-level game and we did exactly that. Two big matches in three days and it is not easy to do. We have the resources and we found the perfect way to play it.

“This one is very big title. We are now highly motivated to play the remaining events of the domestic season at the same level,” added the Al Arabi Club skipper.

Riding brilliant service of Jorge Garcia Gonzalez, Al Arabi Club went 6-1 up in the opening set and did not slacken their grip. Brazilian pro Leandro Vissotto drilled thrilling spikes. Miguel Dalmaw also entertained with power-packed blows.

Moved deftly by setter Seifeddine Elmajid, Gonzalez, experienced Mohammed Ibrahim, Thiago de Oliveira and Ahmed Bassam controlled the net play from the middle in turns to shatter whatever game plan Al Rayyan Club had come to the court with.

Al Rayyan Club took a great deal of time to find their bearings. They did it in the third set from 9-9 till 16-16 with Dusan Petkovic and Yosleyder Cala spiking the ball well from the wings. But when Al Arabi Club opened a two-point lead through Vissotto’s block on Petkovic and Cala’s smash into the net.

Dalmaw stretched the score to 22-18 as he rifled a smash from left. Elmajid added another point with an intelligent prod (23-18).

Petkovic got a point for Al Rayyan Club with a fine punch. But Dalmaw set up the match point with another hard smash and closed it out with an ace, much to the delight of teammates, officials and fans of his team.

Ibrahim Mohammed, back to Al Arabi Club team after recovering from an injury, said,”The entire team did a good job. Whenever needed, the middle players came up and gained the crucial points.

“I was out for about two months. But I’m fit now. It was a fantastic victory against Al Rayyan and this will really boost us in the upcoming events,” he added.

Setter Andre Luiz of Al Rayyan Club said,”In the beginning of the match, they served strong. Also their attack was incredibly strong. Our team is relatively new. There are many new players. I hope we’ll get better with more matches in the League and rest of the season.”

#AlArabiDoha #QatarSuperCup201617 #AlRayyan #MohammedBinHamadAlHitmiIndoorHallDoha

Temporarily disabled
Volleyball players rankingWho is the best volleyball player ever?Show players rankingVolleyball players ranking
Who is the best volleyball player ever?Show players ranking
0