Ferre Reggers was the Belgian revelation at the European Championships. He looks back on the lost match against Poland with mixed feelings? “We showed what we can do against the number 1 in the world. It was a good match for us, but there were a lot of ups and downs,” he says.
“We had very good moments, but also dips. And those dips are still too deep. They last too long and we have to find something about that.”
“We started the match with the idea that we had nothing to lose. And we showed that we could even have won, but it is still Poland. At the right moments they outclassed us.”
“We have a good feeling, but there is always disappointment after a defeat. Especially about those dips. If we concede a few points, it quickly becomes 4 or 5. And then it becomes difficult to get back into the set .”
“That has to be done by the Olympic qualifying tournament.” Because that is indeed the next tournament for the Red Dragons from the end of September.
“We have shown at this European Championship that there is a future in Belgian volleyball with the young guard who is coming and the older guard, such as Sam Deroo and Stijn D’Hulst, who is still at the level to continue. The young people now have to gain experience to improve our level and become more consistent.”
“This was a high-level tournament. We played many matches against top countries such as Poland, Serbia, Italy, … And we often came close in those matches, but we just didn’t succeed. That may be painful, but We are also satisfied.”
Assistant Kris Eyckmans also shared Reggers’ analysis. “The match against Poland is somewhat symbolic of our entire tournament. So we look back on it with mixed feelings.”
“We are showing very good things, but it is not quite there. That was also the case in the group. We knew that we would have to perform against Serbia or Germany to have a good draw, but that just didn’t work. Especially against Germany it was that bitter. We gave it away after two good sets.”
“We also played two good sets against Poland and two inferior sets. The loss in the fourth set was a disappointment because there was a fifth in it. And that against the number 1 in the world.”
“We play with a group that is older and a group that is very young. There is a gap between them, some birth years are missing. We have become stronger this tournament, that’s for sure.”
“The Olympic qualifying tournament starts at the end of September with a number of opponents at the level of Serbia and Germany. We were able to put the heat on them now, but we have to win against them in a few weeks.”
“Our opening match is against Poland and I hope that today we have taken the courage from sets 3 and 4 to believe that we really have a chance to beat Poland as well.”
2023-09-11 21:37:20
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