2010 Volleyball National Cup Finals

The turnout at the National Cup Finals was inspiring to say the least. It was reported that 700 people turned up to watch the pinnacle event in the volleyball calendar. The Under 16s, Under 18s, Sitting Volleyball Grand Prix, Shield and Mens and Women’s Finals all took place over two days in South London.

The highlight, of course was the Men’s finals between London Polonia and Malory Eagles. Don’t get me wrong as a female volleyball player I respect women’s volleyball – duh. But let’s face it – the men hit hard. And when there’s a good block – you can feel it up in the stands. The crowd was definitely at its largest when the men set foot on the court.

Unfortunately for the volleyball fraternity, both sides seemed to be playing reservedly which was a bit of a let down for those who have seen the teams play phenomenally before crowds of 10 people.

It was, however, great to see the implementation of the three ball system, buzzers, paddles, floor wipers AND floor sweepers which are quite standard in other countries. It’s a shame we in the UK can only do it for the finals, but hopefully the sport will grow to a level where these things become standard.

Congratulations are in order to the winning teams:

Men's Shield - University of Birmingham 3-0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-15)
Most Valuable Player was awarded to: Nikolai Nikolov (University of Birmingham)

Women's Cup - Polonia Ladies - Polonia Ladies won 3-0 (25-19, 27-25, 25-13)
Most Valuable Player was awarded to: Jevgenija Livca (Polonia Ladies)

Men's Cup - Malory Eagles Won 3-0 (25-17, 25-17, 25-22)
Most Valuable Player was awarded to: Richard Dobell (Malory Eagles)

Women's Shield - MIddlesbrough College won 3- 1 (22-25, 25-14, 25-10, 25-22)
Most Valuable Player was awarded to: Victoria Swindells (Middlesbrough College)

Sitting Volleyball Grand Prix Series Top 4 Playoffs - East London Lynx 3-0 (25-10, 25-5, 25-10)
Most Valuable Player Awarded to Jabbar Mustaffar (East London Lynx)

U16 Girls - Tameside 3-0 (25-15, 25-15, 25-20)
Most Valuable Player: Jodie Gregson (Tameside)

U16 Boys - Wessex 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-22)
Most Valuable Player: Ryan Stout (Wessex)

U18 Women - Ashcombe 3-2 (25-20, 20-25, 20-25, 25-21, 15-12)
Most Valuable Player: Isobel Fumagalli (Ashcombe Dorking)

U18 Men - Newcastle Staffs 3-2 (25-16, 23-25, 25-16, 24-26, 15-5)
Most Valuable Player: Roman Neveykin (Newcastle Staffs)

Sitting Volleyball - England Vs Wales
England beat Wales 3-0 (25-14, 25-22, 28-26)
Most Valuable Player: John Munro (England)