London, England, May 9, 2017. During the first weekend of May, the time came to finish off the volleyball league in England. On the 6th and 7th May the Finals of the Super 8 division took place at the National Volleyball Centre in Kettering. IBB Polonia LONDON met SHEFFIELD Hallam Volleyball Club in a two-match decider. Until now, the season had been very successful for Polonia, during which time the club had achieved historic victories against the Hungarian and Dutch top teams in the 2017 edition of the CEV Volleyball Challenge Cup.
As successful defenders of the National Cup, IBB Polonia were the very firm favourites going into the Saturday match. The game was a continuation of the good work by Piotr Graban and his charges throughout the season with the Londoners emerging victorious 3-0 (25-23, 25-18, 26-24). The set scores appear tight, but IBB Polonia LONDON were in firm control and cruised through the match.
The Sunday match was a tougher prospect, with SHEFFIELD playing their hearts out; it was a game charged with positive emotion throughout. The result went the way of IBB Polonia LONDON, but with SHEFFIELD interrupting the flow by taking a set. The final result was 3-1 (25-23, 25-18, 26-28, 25-19). The double victory gave the overall title and gold medals to the club from London once again.
The best player of the tournament award went to IBB Polonia LONDON player Mihail Stoev, who received the Golden Ball award for the MVP.
“Mihail deserved the award 100%. He made some huge hits during the games; and also was excellent in defence. He had obviously been targeted by the opposition. The statistics confirm his form on court," said the team statistician of IBB Polonia LONDON,” Igor Drej.
The Londoners completed the season very strongly, emerging the top team in the country and showing some very high level Volleyball throughout. They showed that they deserved the titles they have won.
“It is much harder to retain titles than to win them for the first time, because in your mind you are already a Champion and you expect the same performance once again. We honestly deserved this outcome; at the start of the season, my aim was to win everything and we have achieved that. We defended the Super 8 title and the National Cup and well as made it through to the 1/8 final of the CEV Challenge Cup. This proves our level is higher than the other teams in the UK,” commented head coach Piotr Graban.
This is a great season for the club, amongst whom features World Champion – Krzysztof Ignaczak, who for the first time in his career won a gold medal in a foreign league.
“This is a dream come true. I was lucky enough to play in England and we are all delighted about the result. Every sporting victory tastes sweet! This medal is definitely special, because I won it overseas in a club with Polish roots. I am happy I could help the guys win the trophy. The fans were amazing, they supported us throughout coming all the way to Kettering from London,” Ignaczak said.
“I am proud of what the team achieved this season. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this success and the development of our club: sponsors, players, coaches, medical professionals and the superb fans. It was a hard year. With many demands, successes and emotions and it will go down in history forever in our annals,” said IBB Polonia LONDON President, Bartek Luszcz.
The last national titles for IBB Polonia LONDON were won in the 2015/16 season.