Youngsters Team Take Arab U17 Volleyball Silver
TDT | Manama
Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com
The young Bahrain volleyball side saw their flawless run end one match short of the Arab crown on Sunday as Egypt beat the hosts 3-1 in Riffa, leaving them with a second straight Under-17 silver medal.
Egypt won 25-22, 18-25, 25-22, 25-21 at the Isa bin Rashid Volleyball Arena after Bahrain had won their first four matches without losing a set.
Both sides came into the last round with four wins from four. Neither had dropped a set. Although the championship was played as a round-robin contest, their meeting became a straight fight for gold.
Egypt struck first, taking the opener 25-22.
Bahrain hit back hard. They put Egypt under pressure from the service line, ran away with the second set 25-18 and drew level at 1-1. It was the first set Egypt had lost all week.
The visitors then held their nerve when it mattered. They took the third 25-22 before finishing the job 25-21 in the fourth.
Bahrain coach Yusuf Khalifa said the difference lay in the big points and Egypt's greater experience.
“The players played a huge match across all four sets,” he said. “They played above their level of experience when you compare them with Egypt, whose players have played in world tournaments and built up that experience.
“Our players proved they are men. They showed courage and the will to play at a high level. The decisive points were the difference between us and Egypt.”
Khalifa also pointed to Egypt’s defence and physical strength, saying his side still needed the sort of match experience their opponents had already gained abroad.
“Egypt defended very well,” he said. “Their experience showed, especially in the key points.”
Team manager Abdulla Al Mahroos said the players had kept the promise they made before the championship to fight until the final point.
“The boys gave everything and we are proud of them,” he said. “They promised us they would fight until the last point and they kept their word.
“We did what we could. We worked, we tried and the players gave everything. It was not written for us, but the future is ahead of them and, God willing, what comes next will be better.”
Al Mahroos said the squad had been focused from the first day and felt only small details had stood between Bahrain and the title.
“They were serious from day one and wanted to show what they could do,” he said. “There were small parts of the match where experience did not help us. Next time will be better.”
The defeat left some of Bahrain’s players in tears.
Ahmed Alabbar said missed serves and errors in defence and blocking had hurt the side.
“There is always a winner and a loser,” he said. “We missed some serves and had some problems in defence and blocking, but nobody fell short. The staff and the players were all one unit.
“This is our first championship and, God willing, we will win the ones to come.”
Sayed Hasan Alabbar said the match turned on a handful of mistakes.
“Congratulations to Egypt and hard luck to our team,” he said. “There were small errors during the match, but they changed a lot and cost us.
“The match was very close in most of the sets apart from the second, which we won comfortably. We put them under pressure with our serves and took our chances.
“The third was much the same, but a few mistakes cost us.”
He said facing sides such as Egypt had given Bahrain’s players a useful test as they move on with their clubs and the national side.
Bahrain reached Sunday’s decider on a run of 12 straight set wins.
They opened by beating Jordan 25-14, 25-18, 25-9, then beat Algeria 25-13, 25-14, 25-19.
Kuwait followed. Bahrain won 25-14, survived a gruelling second set 35-33 and raced through the third 25-10.
A fourth 3-0 win, this time over Saudi Arabia, sent Bahrain into the Egypt match with a perfect record.
Egypt had matched them, beating Kuwait, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Algeria without losing a set.
For Bahrain, silver brings a familiar sting. They also finished second in the first Arab Under-17 championship in 2024, when Saudi Arabia took gold.
Related Posts