Youth VB title for Iran

Lankans send Aussies down under:

Bernard PERERA

Iranian Boys playing in the seventh Asian Youth Boy Volleyball Championship maintained its supremacy right throughout the championship and also won the final beating Japan in three straight sets. (25-19, 25-13, 25-17).

Japan too was in good form upto yesterday losing only to Iran in a preliminary game stretching their rivals to four sets before losing 3-1. Japan though lost gave their best upto the last minute.

Iran got off to a fine start taking an early lead 3-1, but the Japanese boys got their act together to get a firm grip before the first technical time out 8-5.

Iranians sensing a bad out come use their tactics to the maximum and got past the Japanese boys when the score read 10 and moved swiftly to extend the lead. They finished the set at 25-19 which gave them the most wanted advantage.

The second set began with the Iranians with a high morale and went into collect points at regular intervals. Most of these points were accumulated through high class blocking. Their blockers were at their best during this set and saw their team win this at 25-13.

The Japanese boys strengthened by these two set defeats tried to make a come back in the third set and got off to an early lead 2-1.

The Iranians did not allow their opponents to dominate and got their act together once again. Here too the blockers did an excellent job for their team collecting almost half of the points during this set. Japanese on the other hand though did not faultered could not penetrate the wall set by the Iranians.

There were few instances where the Japanese boys collected point three to four points consecutively but could not go past the Iranian total at any stage of the set losing at 25-17 and the match 3-0.

Lankans down Aussies

Sri Lankan youth team came up with a brilliant performance yesterday when they completely outplayed the strong outfit from down under in the match played to find the seventh rank.

Lankan lads took the Aussies to the maximum of five sets to record this three sets to two. (25-13, 15-25, 32-34, 25-23, 16-14). This victory for Sri Lanka against Australia came after a lapse of 22 years. Lankans defeated Aussies way back in 1986 on their own soil in down under.

Lankans after winning the first set 25-13 and lost the second at 15-25. The third set saw the lads from the host country make a strong bid but lost the same 34-32. Never say die Lankan boys once again put on a gallant show to take the fourth set at 25-23 which also stretched the game to the fifth set.

Lankan Boys were in front at one stage but the Aussies made a late rally to equalise at 14 all, and had to go for the deuce points. Sri Lankans made no mistakes at this moment and clinched the set at 16-14 to take the match and the seventh slot in the rankings.

India beat China

India defeated China to be placed third in the rankings. This game too went the full length of five sets in favour of India 3-2, 21-25, 25-21, 25-21, 18-25, 15-11).

China won the first set, later India won the next two sets and got off to a 2-1 lead. Chinese making a strong bid managed to win the fourth to equalise 2-2 and went for the final set, which the Indians had it easy winning the same 15-11.