SL BENFICA celebrates win in Portugal's Supercup
SL BENFICA claimed for the second time in history Portugal’s Supercup as the team mentored by head coach José Jardim edged AJ Fonte do Bastardo in straight sets (25-23, 25-21, 25-21) to take home the trophy as well as a check of 10’000 € provided by the sponsor of the competition, Sport Zone.
The 14th edition of the Supercup was organized by the Portuguese Volleyball Federation (FPV) in collaboration with the Volleyball Association of Lisbon (AVL) and with the support of the Municipal Council of Lisbon. The awards were presented by Vicente Araujo (President of the FPV), Nuno Braancamp (President of AVL), Vitalino Fagundes (AJ Fonte do Bastardo President), John Coutinho (Vice-Chairman of SL BENFICA) and Claudio Pina and Nelson Neves (Sport Zone).
In the first set AJ Fonte do Bastardo, the national champion, claimed a small margin but SL BENFICA never lost their concentration and won the opening section of the game 25-23. With good attacks and services SL BENFICA dominated the scene in set 2 and 3 seizing the match with a double 25-21.
In the end, the coach of SL BENFICA, José Jardim, said: “We knew how to play as a team, with serenity, even in moments where we were trailing down”.
Hugo Gaspar of SL BENFICA was the best scorer of the game with 14 points: “The work we have done this month was decisive for the favorable outcome of this match, because we had many new players, but all went well. I think this victory, against an opponent who fought well, was the best way to thank the fans who were, once again, very good in their support, and also the best way to start the season”.
Manuel Silva of AJ Fonte do Bastardo added: “The first set was the key to the match, but we are confident for the remainder of the season. We made mistakes and we will now analyze this match. We are a humble team, but we are the champions and we will defend the title that gave us so much joy at the end of the last season”.
His head coach Alexandre Afonso concluded: “We expected a little more. It turned out to be a typical match for the start of the season, with plenty of mistakes from both teams. The first set was very balanced, but luck smiled at BENFICA. We had many flaws and the defense of BENFICA was good enough to determine the outcome of the match”.
