01/05/2019 12:00
English team put up a fight in Kuala Lumpur ahead of Continental Cup
2018-2020 CEV Beach Volleyball Continental Cup
London, England, May 1, 2019. It is never eye-catching to report on gallant losers but one of England’s teams who will be playing in London at the end of the month put in an excellent performance Tuesday against top-class opposition at the FIVB World Tour event in Kuala Lumpur.
Playing in the first round of qualifications, Victoria Palmer and Jessica Grimson faced the experienced Canadian pairing of Julie Gordon and Shanice Marcelle and eventually went down 16-21, 21-15, 15-12 in 44 minutes. The Canadians then went on to lose in three sets to Corinne Quiggle and Amanda Dowdy, an even better known team from the United States.
Vicky and Jess had done well. Grimson explained after the match: “We are very disappointed not to have managed to get over the line considering how we started the game but we had a very specific game plan and style of play that we were trying to execute and that worked well and is something that we will take forward into the next few events. For now we will make the most of our time to train with some of the best in the world.”
It will be serious training in the humidity of Malaysia and two tournaments, one in Thailand and the next in Turkey on their way home. The resort of Aydin will put on the Turkish event so should ensure some home support from holidaymakers there. Like Kuala Lumpur, both Turkey and Thailand, are World Tour events.
Palmer and Grimson are England’s number one pair and will compete at the Feel Good Too sports ground playing against teams from France, Belarus and Northern Ireland in the first stage of the CEV Continental Cup on May 25-26.
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