|
Final
Egypt wins the second
title in a raw
 Nairobi,
Kenya, September 13, 2008- Egypt continued their
superior performance and won their last match against
Seychelles to achieve their second title in a raw in the
2008 Women’s Junior African Nations championship. Egypt
finished the competition in a clean sheet of win loss
ratio of 4-0 in the 5 nations round robin competition
held at Moi International Sports Centre of Kasarani in
the Kenyan capital of Nairobi on Friday. The defending
champions Egypt kept the crown home after they won the
2006 edition in their homelands.
The fifth and final day of the competition showed also
Tunisia beating Kenya for the second position and the
organizers lost the chance to qualify to the World
championship as Tunis finished second to secure the
second position of the competition leaving Kenya for
bronze.
Egypt vs. Seychelles 3-1
Egypt survived a scary first set before settling down to
claim a 3-1 win (23-25, 25-17, 25-15, 25-15) over
inspired Seychelles to win the competition. The win
means that Egypt take the sole automatic ticket to
represent the continent in the World Championship that
will be held in Mexico City in July. Egypt still nursing
a night partying hangover were rattled by the Seychelles
side as they run to a 8-4 lead before the Egyptians
clawed back to salvage a tie at 11-11.The two sides then
looked level on skills as they tied 13-13, 15-15 with
Yehia Tasmin, Hussein Yasmin and setter Menatalla Mena
towering and making Seychelles do the chasing. But
Seychelles captain Marielle Bonne proved to be a thorn
in Egypt flesh as she landed several points to see the
two sides tie at 23-23. Seychelles then used strong
service of Valarie Toussaint to make two quick scores to
take the set 25-23. A talk by Hesham Badrawy inspired
Egypt as they resumed the second set a stronger side and
piled pressure on the Seychelles inexperienced side to
claim 8-4 lead at the first technical time out. But
errors in Seychelles court enabled Egypt to open up a
comfortable lead and were going to the second breather
with their scores at 16-10. Efforts by Seychelles coach
to salvage something was only a temporary gap as his
side lacked the tactical skills to lock out the
Egyptians who took the set 25-17.
Yasmin and Nassef Nada were instrumental in the third
set making clear their intentions as they took a 8-2
lead. Lack of blocks from the Seychelles side propelled
Egypt to a 14-5 to force J.M Roche to call for time out.
Return of Bonne over the net restored some dignity in
Seychelles but they could not stop Egypt from claiming a
16-6 lead at the breather.But Seychelles were better on
resumption and restricted Egypt to gain only two points
out of their mistakes as they closed them down to 12-19.
Egypt held on to win 25-15.In the fourth set, Egypt was
stronger mentally and though their strong spikes sailed
through to take a 25-15.
Tunisia vs. Kenya 3-1
Kenya’s hopes and chances of making it to next year’s
World Junior Volleyball Championships in Mexico City hit
a dead end after they crushed 3-1 (25-13, 22-25, 25-14,
25-22) to Tunisia at the end of Africa Nations
Championships
“We did it,” was all the Tunisian coach, Chebbi Rached
could say after the match.
Although Kenya’s Everlyne Makuto pounded a couple of
early winners through the Tunisian block on the left,
the hosts couldn’t contain the marauding Tunisians who
snatched a 6-1 lead to prompt a time out from the Kenyan
bench. Things weren’t surely going the Kenyans way as
they reached the first technical time out trailing at
3-8.
The outstanding Agrebi Rahma, a great prospect for the
side, steadied the Tunisian ship with some crunching
blocks of her own, but she was then rejected by a pumped
up Makuto when they went head to head down the middle.
The attacking trio of Makuto, Ndiema Chemutai and
Brendah Kamamos was too blunt, Cherif Nouha was showing
the hosts how things are done with electric strikes, and
magnificent blocks that could only leave the Kenyans
imagining what had hit them.
Trailing 4-11, Kenya took their second time out, but
they still could not work out how to stop the flow of
attacks from the surging Tunisian team. The North
Africans stood 16-5 at the second technical time out. As
the Kenyans stretched for their shots, attack errors
followed and their opponents wrapped up the opening
frame 25-13.
On resumption for the second set, Kenya had one
resolution, taking an early lead. And truly they did.
The Tunisian team was on the receiving end as they
trailed 4-2 within the first minutes of the set. This
didn’t go down well with coach, Chebbi Rached who called
for a timeout. It made little difference as they scored
only five points while conceding four, to stand at 8-7
at the first technical timeout.
Makuto was inspiring in ensuring the Kenyan lead, but a
sequence of blunders at Kenyan centre helped the
visitors reduce the difference to 11-10. Despite the
scare, Kenyans managed to hold to a 16-12 advantage at
the second technical time out. Rose Magoi was superb in
her setting and Kamamos didn’t disappoint as she
showered the Tunisians with thunderbolt strikes.
Suddenly, Kenyans had got back their rhythm as they made
it one-set all, with a 25-22 win.
In the third set, Tunisia cranked up the power with some
sharply angled spikes into the feet of the Kenyan
defenders, that forced the Kenyan technical bench to
call for a time out trailing 5-1.
Instead of utilising the chance to correct their
mistakes, on the contrary, it was Tunisia who
capitalised on Kenya’s lapses to take a 8-1 lead at the
first technical timeout. The hard-hitting Makuto reduced
the gap with a towering winner from the left, but was
then blocked by the spring-heeled Rahma on the opposite
flank.
Again, attack errors under no pressure cost Kenya points
as they seemed to run out of steam allowing the agile
Tunisians to a 16-8 second technical time out lead.
With the urgency of having the match done with, Tunisia
introduced hard-hitting Sassi Nadia for Ben Youssef
Sonia, who never faltered as she helped her side to a
25-14.
Kenya looked in a hurry to claim the set and strung
together a series of quick points as their opponent’s
fire flickered on and off, taking a 8-5 lead by the
first technical time out. They maintained the lead at
the second technical time out, 16-12. But all the laughs
went the Tunisian way as they won the set and
consequently the match, 25-22.
|
