Chaumont VB 52 Haute-Marne and Tours, until then in unison at the start of the season, separated on contrary feelings, Friday October 18, after the victory of the Cévebistes (3-1), in Palestra. The joy of the locals contrasted with the disappointment of the visitors.
It’s a “classic” with a somewhat special context which surrounded the meeting between Chaumont VB 52 Haute-Marne and Tours, Friday October 18, in Palestra. Coming very early in the season, the confrontation took on a real challenge that was more mental than financial. While the two rivals have followed a similar start so far (two losses and a victory), they aligned themselves with the Taraflex Chaumontais with the desire to avoid the famous “one step forward and two steps back” effect. .
Because this is clearly the feeling that awaited the loser of the evening, in this case the Tourangeaux who left completely empty-handed and inevitably disappointed with the final result (3-1), as some of them pointed out before to take the bus again. “On the pitch, we certainly showed some good things, but in the end, we went home with nothing even though we could have hoped to share the points. You will have to restart the machine once again. However, we are exempt on the next day and some of our opponents will take a little further lead in the rankings. Then, we face Poitiers, the team in the best shape at the start of the season, with a certain pressure that we will inevitably have to relieve. »
Logically bitter speeches, obviously far from the joy which invaded the premises at the final whistle. Contrary atmospheres: “It’s good for confidence. We confirm our victory at the Cannes promotion against one of the “tenors” of the championship. At least we can project ourselves towards Montpellier (Tuesday evening) with more serenity. »
Hot reactions which will only be distant memories in a few months, when the situations of the two teams have evolved and the real issues of the season will be placed on the table.
Precarious balance
In the meantime, the Chaumontais are relishing the situation, when their coach, Silvano Prandi, will be able to use this opposition to try to advance his collective a little further on a qualitative level.
The first lesson, drawn from the end of the first match in Tourcoing, remains valid: CVB 52 must absolutely reduce its unforced errors in the game. With almost ten on average per set on Friday evening, Jospeh Worsley and his Teammates are then constantly obliged to achieve double winning points to win a round. In Cannes and against Tours, the Cévebistes succeeded in this bet. But can this precarious balance between success and failure hold over time, with all the effort it requires? At least, the Haut-Marnais have proven during their last two meetings that they have, once again, the squad to meet the challenge, particularly at the “end of the net” where the entry into play of Niko Suihkonen, in place of Jacob Pasteur who was running out of steam, quickly restored efficiency to the group.
A challenge which also holds up by the overall quality of the collective, guided by Joseph Worsley as inventive and lucid as ever, who must rely on total realism across the width of the net. Will this requirement be able to hold when the pace of matches accelerates, with the imminent arrival of the Champions League in particular?
The CVB 52 will have a little glimpse of it on Tuesday, barely four days after the reception of Tours, with a trip to Montpellier, another “biggest” of the championship: a pace and a quality of opposition which already resembles daily life in Chaumont future…
Laurent Génin
Shane Holdaway: “We put a lot of heart into it! »
jhmquotidien: What do you remember from this victory against Tours?
Shane Holdaway (central to CVB 52): “Above all, I remember above all the pleasure taken in performing in front of this audience. I really liked the atmosphere this evening at Palestra and the incessant encouragement from our supporters. I understand why they say that Chaumont has one of the best audiences in France. I also think that both teams produced a good show. Even though there were a lot of unforced errors, we managed to contain our opponent. Tours is a very good team in this Marmara Spikeligue and to beat them, we had to play a good match. »
jhmquotidien: What, in your opinion, was the key to this meeting?
S. H. : “We knew how to tighten up and toughen up the game at the right moments. We put a lot of heart into this confrontation. We were able to find solutions by raising our level at several important moments. This is why I have the impression that with the intensity, we played the match we needed. »
jhmquotidien: How do you feel in this group that you are discovering this season?
S. H. : “First, I want to say that I really appreciate my teammates who make up this squad. On a human level, we are truly all connected, and this offers the desire to work well together. Then, this osmosis is found on the ground. I’m sure we have a talented group. We can obviously still improve, but there is a solid sporting base. Then, I can only praise the club’s efforts to involve us in a very professional project. We players can really dedicate ourselves fully to volleyball. »
jhmquotidien: How will you now prepare for this next meeting against Montpellier which is arriving very quickly?
S. H. : “We’re going to sleep well and drink lots of water to recover well (laugh). It’s true that the next meeting is coming up in four days. It will be essential to recover physically from this battle against Tours, because in Montpellier, a new big opponent awaits us. »
Collected by LG
Lukas Maase gains height
Joseph Worsley (1 att. sur 3, 1 cont., 1 ser., 1 faute dir.) : Always as inventive, the American passer is the driving force of this team. At the height throughout the match, he finished with a bang with a “block” in “one against one” against Hermans Egleskalns and an “ace” to offer the first match point to his team.
Shane Holdaway (5 attacks out of 9, 2 con., 0 sets, 3 dir. fouls): The central cevebist once again proved himself valuable at the net. Effective on the attack and decisive on the counter, he also has a real quality of service.
Mathis Henno (9 att. sur 22, 1 cont., 1 ser., 8 fautes dir.) : Less effective than against Cannes, the young Chaumontais was nonetheless decisive on certain important points. His serenity in the game is undeniably an asset. He still needs to be a bit more regular on the serve, one of his favorite weapons.
Pierre Toledo (17 attacks out of 29, 0 cont., 0 ser., 11 dir. fouls): The “pointy” Haut-Marne did not go through the meeting at a constant pace. Sometimes experiencing some more delicate passages in terms of efficiency, he nevertheless knew how to be realistic on certain important moments, perfectly serving the ambition of his family.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Lukas Maase (9 attacks out of 11, 4 con., 0 sets, 2 dir. fouls): Since the start of the competition, the ex-Parisian has completely immersed himself in his role. Not always regular in preparation matches, he has raised his standards since the first match in Tourcoing and is still gaining strength, in perfect harmony with his passer.
Jacob Pasteur (7 attacks out of 15, 1 con., 1 set, 6 dir. fouls): The young American started the confrontation perfectly: rather solid in reception and determined at the net. He nevertheless ran out of steam during the second set, much less effective as the minutes passed.
Sebastian Closter (libero): The Argentinian followed up with a second good performance, after his first tenure in Cannes. Solid in reception, attentive in defense, he also contributed a lot, with his voice, to bringing serenity to the group during more difficult moments.
Niko Suihkonen (3 attacks out of 13, 0 con., 1 ser., 5 dir. fouls): Back in the group after becoming a father, the Finn entered the duel perfectly, but was unable to display lasting consistency. His “ace” at the end of the fourth set nevertheless proves that he can remain decisive at any time.
Nathan Litzke : The CVB 52 passer knows his role: enter punctually to try to enhance the counterattack, and relieve his compatriot Joseph Worsley for a few minutes from time to time. He does his job perfectly.
Cheikh Diop (1 attack out of 1, 1 direct foul): In the little playing time allowed, the “sharp” cevébist had time to score his first point in the championship this season.
Josef Polak: The Czech made an appearance in the third set without touching the ball.
The opponent
Michael Marshman (central de Tours) : “It was a match between two teams who are still looking for each other, who have been reshuffled a lot in the offseason. For our part, we had a complicated start to the season with Sclater’s injury and Coric’s suspension. It’s going to take us a little while before we’re up to full speed. This evening, we were able to observe a very talented Chaumont team who deserved their victory. But I think we also have great potential here. Moreover, our collective improved over the minutes against the Haut-Marnais. We must not have any regrets about this duel and concentrate on the future. We are exempt on the next day, Tuesday and Wednesday. This will give us a week to prepare for the reception in Poitiers: a big meeting for us. »
Fewer, but noisy!
Friday October 18, Palestra certainly experienced its lowest attendance for a Chaumont VB 52 Haute-Marne match against its “best enemy” from Tours. With only 1,142 spectators filling the stands, we were far from the full house, observed two weeks earlier, against Earvin Ngapeth’s Poitiers. Proof that an abundance of goods can sometimes be harmful, with a new gala poster and the ticket prices that go with it, as President Bruno Soirfeck humbly acknowledged. “I certainly made a small strategic error on an economic level by playing two gala matches in a row. » However, in terms of atmosphere, the Chaumontese public wanted to be much noisier than during the previous match: support greatly appreciated by the players elsewhere.
