Marmara SpikeLeague (1st day)
The gentle breeze of a magical summer still floats gently in the air, at the dawn of a season which opens this weekend with a euphoric tone. In the momentum of the Blues, Olympic champions in Paris in August, the MSL strikes three blows this weekend with stars in their eyes. Of course, the collectives are not going to backfire right away. But there are a thousand promises to pick up. Obviously, there will be people, a lot of people at Lawson-Body on Saturday evening to see the iconic star, Earvin Ngapeth, hit the ball with strength and heart in the Alterna Stade Poitevin jersey. A chance, a godsend, a miracle, call it what we want, but above all let’s take advantage of its presence! Even if Narbonne, the first host of Saturday evening, will do everything to spoil the party in Poitou. From Friday evening, in the advanced match, the SNVBA, all handsome in its outgoing French champion costume, will also be expected in Cannes, LBM champion and back among the greats. Beaten in the Super Cup, Saint-Nazaire would obviously like to get off to a good start. Montpellier, to whom the first laurels in the Super Cup were crowned, immediately went to the cathedral in Tours. Even if the TVB had a difficult summer, notably with the injury of its leading recruit, Ryan Sclater, and must do without its emblematic passer, Zeljko Coric, suspended for the first two days of the season.
In the North, the match will pick up quickly too, with a Tourcoing – Chaumont thundering, between two highly ambitious teams, respectively 3rd and 1st in the last regular season! With a Paris region derby from the first day, Le Plessis-Robinson and Paris will not have to look far for motivation. Finally on Sunday, Nice and Toulouse will close this lovely first MSL lift on the Côte d’Azur, from which Sète will be exempt.
Saforelle Power 6 (1st day)
The women’s championship which opens this Saturday evening also promises to be very interesting and thrilling. At the forefront of the centers of interest, we will obviously want to see how the outgoing champion, Levallois Paris will assume his rank. Dominated by Nantes in the Super Cup final, the Mariannes, who host the promoted Bordeaux, present this year a 90% revamped squad, but they will have to find the right rhythm fairly quickly. The Neptunes, also well shaken this summer, showed good things in the Super Cup final and they will immediately have a serious test, against Terville Florange, solidly anchored in the Top 8 for the last four seasons.
We will also closely monitor the awakening of Volero Le Cannet, opposed to Marcq-en-Barœul. Double champions of France 2022 and 2023, the Cannettanes stumbled in the semi-finals of the Play-Offs last spring, but want to return to the chair. Neighbor Cannes comes out of a complicated and totally unsuccessful exercise (11th). He would like not to stumble for his first home match against Quimper, who only won two LAF matches last season. The eternal locomotive of French women’s volleyball, Mulhouse returns to the campaign with high ambitions and crosses the road on Saturday evening from Pays d’Aix Venelles to the Palais des Sports to open the season. Béziers, released by the VMA in the quarter-finals of the Play-Offs last spring,
welcomes Chamalières to launch the adventure. Finally, we will be attentive to the progress of Vandoeuvre-Nancy, magnificent 4th in the last regular exercise, and who again poses as a dangerous challenger this year.
