VOLLEYBALL – BAHRAIN’S Al Ahli Club suffered their first defeat last night in the third West Asian Clubs Volleyball Championship for Men, currently being hosted by the kingdom.
They bowed to Al Rayyan of Qatar 0-3 (24-26, 17-25, 19-25) in a tough clash at Isa Bin Rashid Volleyball Arena at Isa Sports City in Riffa.
Ahli had a strong start but narrowly missed out on securing the first set. That proved costly as their heavily favoured rivals took charge from there and secured the win in convincing fashion.
Bahrain Volleyball Association (BVA) president and Arab Volleyball Association chief Shaikh Ali bin Mohammed Al Khalifa was on hand during last night’s game.
With the result, Ahli suffered a loss to follow their victory against Northern Refineries of Iraq in their opening fixture on Friday night. The Bahrainis are only scheduled to return to the court on Tuesday against Al Salam of Oman, who battled back from two sets down to edge past Kuwait’s Al Qadsia 3-2 (19-25, 19-25, 25-22, 25-18, 15-10).
Ahli then face off with Qadsia on Wednesday, before wrapping up their title bid against Al Arabi of Qatar on Saturday next week. All of Ahli’s games are scheduled for 7pm starts.
Tournament play continues today with two games on schedule. At 4.30pm, Qadsia take on Arabi, to be followed at 7pm by Salam facing off with Northern Refineries.
In Ahli’s loss last night, they were up against a formidable Rayyan line-up that features Papemaguette Diangne, Marcus Vinusis, Olivier Venno, Andre Luiz France, Milos Stevanovic, and other top players.
The two teams battled toe-to-toe in the first set but then Hasan Haider made some key contributions to help Ahli go up 11-7. Their lead was short-lived, however, as Rayyan were right back in the thick of things. Mohammed Anan and Sayed Mohammed Al Abbar later helped the Bahrainis keep the score close, but after Rayyan took a 25-24 edge, Venno went for the kill for the early match advantage.
Rayyan were then dominant in the second set, pulling away midway through for a 20-14 gap and then quickly closing it out. Diangne delivered the decisive point that sealed the frame.
Rayyan rode their momentum into the third and built a commanding 9-4 lead, but the hosts did not go down without a fight and gradually clawed their way back, with an Ali Ebrahim ace tying it at 13-all. But Rayyan regained their composure and a Diangne stop made it 18-15. Ahli never recovered, and Rayyan obliged, posting their second win in as many outings.
Venno finished as the match’s high scorer, posting 20 points, including four on blocks.
In Salam’s win yesterday, Qadsia’s Mohammadredza Beik was the game’s leading scorer with 29 points, 26 of which came in attack.
Salam bounced back for their first victory after previously losing to Arabi, while Qadsia suffered their second straight defeat after kicking off their competition campaign with a loss against Rayyan.
The third West Asian Clubs Volleyball Championship for Men is being played in league format. This six-team event has been organised by the BVA in cooperation with the West Asia Volleyball Association.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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