Volleyball Update: Morocco outplayed by
Egypt in the 2010 Boys’ Youth African Championship
The 2010 Boys’ Youth African Volleyball Championship invited boys’ volleyball teams from many African countries. Most of the tournament has already occurred, and it is likely to be completed by the 20th of September,
2010. The teams from Morocco and Egypt are the favourites for the top spot. Morocco have already displayed their desire for the Championship by destroying South Africa in their opening match.
In their second match, Morocco went head to head with Egypt. It was Egypt’s first game and they swept Morocco aside by claiming a 3-1 (19-25, 27-25, 25-20, and 25-20) victory.
The first set belonged to the Moroccan team as they seemed pretty confident and notched up a well deserved set. The first set resembled their previous game against the hosts, South Africa. They easily highlighted spaces and flaws
in the Egyptian defence and exploited them brilliantly. The Moroccans then took control and won the set 25-19.
Egypt however came back furious. The loss of the first set at the hands of the Moroccans fired them up no end. Morocco however seemed confident and via their star player Amine Zayani overpowered the Egyptian blockers and took a
commanding 5-1 lead.
The Egyptian players took a while to settle in but then slowly started to find their groove. They figured out the Moroccans’ game plan and started to formulate a counter approach. The Egyptian setter Ahmed Elganaini and outside
hitter Soufiane Raraji surprised their opponents with amazing plays. Moreover, Marawan Mohamed and Sherif Nassef put in a combined effort to bring back the Egyptians back into the game. Lanky Mohamed Masoud then delivered incredible line shots and helped Egypt
lead for the first time in the match as they went ahead 14-13.
The score kept trickling ahead as both teams tried to limit each other and play kept shifting about. Ultimately, the Egyptians managed to hold their nerve and eked out a win at 27-25.
The heat was on in the third set. It started out fast as both teams emphasized speed over flex. The Moroccans generated good pace on the ball and started to put together some marvellous plays. Similarly, the Egyptian players were
at their very best as well and did their most to r****d the Moroccans’ advances. The set was close halfway through, but then Egypt’s blockers turned on the style. Their blockers saved a substantial amount of points and created a platform for their hitters
to build upon. Egypt’s attackers then pummelled the Moroccan defence with wonderful spikes and catapulted Egypt into a 14-9 lead with the help of Sherif Nasseef and Islam Abdelkader. The Egypt’s closed the set with a 25-20.
The fourth set resembled a do or die situation for the Moroccans then. Victory would mean they could still stay in the match, while a loss would mean Egyptian victory and a chance for the Egyptians to display their superiority
over the Moroccan team. The Moroccans threw everything into the attack but struggled to level the score. With pressure mounting, the Moroccan’s started to crumble further, leaving huge gaps in their armoury. After noticing the tiring Moroccans, Egypt grabbed
the game by the scruff of its neck. By the end of the set which Egypt won 25-20, they look reasonably comfortable and thus registered their first victory of the tournament.
Tags: