Heavy defeat last night for NVB at home against Tourcoing. A serious setback with the score of 3 sets to 0 in favor of the visitors. But beyond the score and the defeat, it’s the mindset displayed by the Nice players that’s the most concerning element.
This was the highlight of the 12th day of the championship, as it pitted the second against the third in Ligue B. It was also the revenge match of the championship final from two years ago, which the Nice team lost against the Tourcoing team.
Two years ago, NVB managed to push Tourcoing to a tie-break, but last night the difference in level between the two teams was too great.
Yet the Azur team held their ground in the first two sets, losing them only by the scores of 22-25 and 23-25. This was mainly thanks to Jerรดme Clerre and Niklas Sepannen, who were the top scorers for Nice in the game with 24 and 25 points respectively.
However, each time, Mladen Kasic’s men faltered at the end of the set, succumbing to the attacks and blocks of the northern team (14 blocks for Tourcoing throughout the match). In addition to this, there were numerous errors in serving, at the net, and in attacks (30 points given away in total by NVB).
At the start of the third set, there seemed to be a resurgence. The Azur team led in the beginning, but soon fell back into their bad habits. They suffered a dreadful 7-1 run during the first technical timeout.
The Nice team could not recover. Despite a gamble by Mladen Kasic when he took out his setter and captain Raphael Corre, they ultimately lost with a score of 25-16.
As a result of this defeat, their evening opponents are now level with them in the standings.
Facing one of the contenders for promotion this year, NVB showed troubling signs of weakness and powerlessness. They will need to get back on track next Friday against Cambrai.
by Dรฉsirรฉ Teivao
