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U18 Super Series round four review - Boswells and Staffs go into Last 8 as form teams
The two sides have battled for superiority throughout the 2024-25 season, with the Londoners having won round one and round three and the Essex-based side having triumphed in round two.
And it was Darren Lewis’ side who ensured they have ended with honours even going into next month’s Last 8 as they powered to victory in their final match of the day to decide top spot, winning it 25-21, 25-16.
Boswells had started as they meant to go on, having too much power for a South Bucks A side who went on to show their stickability and court craft during the rest of the day, the former triumphing 25-15, 25-9.
That match was second on court 2 after a tight encounter between Leeds Gorse Orange and Taunton that saw the saw the first two sets shared (25-19, 22-25) before the Yorkshire side clinched a nail-biting decider 17-15.
On court 1, Richmond were also in no mood to mess around and swept aside Nottingham Rockets 25-12, 25-16.
Malory Eagles then pipped Urmston Grammar A to the post, bouncing back after losing the second set to win in the tie breaker (25-22, 22-25, 15-12).
The second clutch of matches featuring the four winning sides from the first round threw up some interesting pairings.
Richmond took on London rivals Malory and were left stunned in the first set as the Eagles took six consecutive points to rally from 24-20 down to take the first set 26-24.
But they did not make the same mistake twice and won the second set with a degree of comfort, 25-16, as well as the decider 15-11.
The other match proved to be more straightforward for the victors as Boswells eased to a 25-16, 25-18 success against Leeds.
The four losing sides from the first round of games were determined to enjoy more fruitful second matches, and it was Urmston Grammar who managed to do just that at the expense of Nottingham Rockets (25-20, 25-10).
Also smiling, after edging a much tighter game, were South Bucks, who demonstrated their tenacity to beat Taunton 25-23, 27-25.
The final set of matches to decide overall positions produced some engrossing volleyball and after Boswells had prevailed against Richmond, what was the last game of the day on court saw Leeds Gorse fight back strongly to defeat Malory and clinch third spot.
They struggled in the first set, losing it 25-22, but then really hit their straps in the second and third sets taking them 25-16, 15-10 with some powerful play.
The fifth/sixth match saw Urmston Grammar A make it two wins from three as they overcame South Bucks 25-21, 26-24 in a keenly-contested affair.
Taunton edged victory on the seventh/eighth place game as they recovered from losing the first set 25-21 to take the next two 25-13, 15-12.
In the boys’ section, Newcastle Staffs secured a second consecutive round victory to ensure they will go into the Last 8 matches with confidence.
Their campaign for the day began with an assured 25-18, 2-16 success over The Boswells School, while the other match on court 1 saw Willesden Titans beat a Nottingham Rockets side (25-21, 25-21) who were playing in the Super Series for the first time.
Both the opening matches on court 2 were also concluded in straight sets, with Urmston Grammar coming through a tight first set to beat AST Academy 25-23, 25-16 and Richmond A defeating London rivals IBB Polonia Pro Volley 25-22, 25-16.
In the meetings between teams who won in the first grouping of matches, however, things were much closer.
Urmston pulled off an excellent win over Richmond in taking the tie breaker 15-11 following the exchange of the first two sets (25-14, 15-25).
Newcastle Staffs were pushed hard in the first set by Willesden, with the teams locked at 19-19 before the West Midlanders pulled away to win 25-20.
They then capitalised on that by clinching the second set with far fewer problems (25-13).
The contests between the sides defeated in the first set of matches were contrasting in their level of competitiveness.
Boswells’ 25-15, 25-16 was relatively routine, but AST and Polonia’s match was a topsy turvy affair that was hard to predict.
AST claimed the first set 25-16 but their opponents hit back to take the next 25-19, so they had to do it the hard way by digging deep to secure the decider 15-10.
In the final matches, Staffs underlined why they will have the favourites tag as the form team going into the Last 8 as they were always in control against Urmston.
They showed no sign of nerves in wrapping up a 25-15, 25-22, but the Greater Manchester side could nevertheless be happy with their day’s work.
Richmond recovered well from their defeat to Urmston to take third place, prevailing against a game Willesden 25-18, 25-19.
The fifth and sixth place match was an entertaining one as AST took the first set 25-12 against Boswells, who claimed the next two 25-12, 15-11.
Polonia finished the day on a high as they defeated Rockets by a 25-20, 25-16 margin.
Images by Jon Cornish
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