26/07/2015 22:54
Greece join Estonia and Slovenia in elite club of teams with immaculate record
2015 CEV Volleyball European League - Men
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Rovinj, Croatia, July 26, 2015. There are three teams with an immaculate record of six wins in as many matches they have contested so far in the 2015 CEV Volleyball European League – Men. On Sunday night Greece joined Estonia and Slovenia in this elite club after claiming their second away win over Croatia in Rovinj, this time by the score of 3:1 (23-25, 25-17, 25-18, 25-17).
On Sunday night Croatia’s mentor Igor Simuncic tried to surprise his opponent with a different starting six. And he actually succeeded in doing this as Croatia claimed the opening set by 25-23. After that, however, everything went just easy for Greece that swept three in a row to celebrate their sixth straight victory in the competition. Athanasios Protopsaltis and Nikolaos Palentzas paced the visitors with 15 and 14 points, respectively. This way they helped Greece take another three points and further cement their credentials for a spot in the Final Four tournament which is scheduled for August 13-14 in Walbrzych, Poland. Croatia’s rising star Leo Andric got the chance to play from start to end and he delivered an excellent performance registering 21 points but unfortunately his teammates were not able to do the same.
Croatia’s mentor Igor Simuncic said: “We opted for players that are physically ready to play. In games like these we give an opportunity to players that have left their mark on the national league. When they get this chance, they show a lot of motivation and determination to play well but they also produce a large number of easy mistakes. Greece, on the other hand, came in with a clear vision and a profile of the game that did not match ours. I would like to stress once again that the motivation and desire to win of our players are not to be questioned.”
Greece’s team captain Menelaos Kokkinakis (pictured, #9) commented: “After the first set, we decided to concentrate and we put a lot of pressure with our serves and blocks. What is important is that we have six wins in six games. That’s what really matters now.”
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