Mjølnir Klaksvík and Fleyr Tórshavn crowned Faroese national champions
News from the National Federations
Tórshavn, Faroe Islands, April 22, 2019. Mjølnir Klaksvík claimed on Saturday their first Faroese men’s national league title since 2004. An agonising wait of 15 years is finally over, but it was not easy, as they again had to cope with the challenge mounted by Fleyr Tórshavn all the way in the second leg of the final. Fleyr Tórshavn won their third women’s league title in four years in a hard-fought five-setter against SÍ Sørvágur in the second leg of the finals.
To cement the rising status of Volleyball in the Faroe Islands, the finals enjoyed live radio coverage, live streaming from the national TV, while many photographers attended the title-deciding matches as well.
Men’s final – 2nd leg
Mjølnir vs. Fleyr 3-1 (27-29, 28-26, 25-22, 28-26)
Just as in the first leg (click here), Fleyr will again rue golden missed opportunities as they failed to capitalise on a host of set points in the second and fourth set. That also nearly cost them the first set, as they needed five set balls before they edged out Mjølnir to win it 29-27. Mjølnir survived two set balls to finally take the second set 28-26 and put themselves within touching distance of the title by winning the third set 25-22. However, Fleyr looked to be on their way to force a tiebreaker as they took a 24-20 lead in the fourth set, but failed to make any of their four set balls count before Mjølnir took advantage of their second match ball to clinch the title.
“The game was a bit messy and we were a bit nervous,” Mjølnir captain Thorvald Danielsen told Faroese television. “However, we worked hard and kept our head cool in key moments,” he explained.
Women's final - second leg
Fleyr vs. SÍ Sørvágur 3-2 (23-25, 25-23, 25-23, 29-31, 15-11)
SÍ got off to a winning start, taking the opening set 25-23, but Fleyr levelled the match by winning the second set 25-23 after almost throwing away a 10-point lead midway through the set. After Fleyr had won the third set 25-23, SÍ were up against the wall in the fourth set, which they had to win to stay alive in the championship battle. When facing three match balls at 21-24, the odds looked dismal for SÍ, but they dug deep to level at 25-25. They survived three more at 26-27, 27-28 and 28-29 before they got their nose ahead and won the set 31-29 with their second set ball to force the tiebreaker.
In the tiebreaker, Fleyr romped ahead 11-4 and were cruising towards the title, and although SÍ managed to narrow the gap to 14-9, which prompted Fleyr to take a time-out, the margin was too wide and Fleyr finally made their sixth match- and championship ball count, winning the tiebreaker 15-11.
“I knew we were going to make it,” Fleyr player Hilda Bolstad Mortensen told Faroese television. “It was just a bit annoying that they could make that comeback in the fourth set, but I knew deep down that this was our match - because we are the better team,” she claimed.
Information from www.cev.eu
Posted in International on Apr 23, 2019
