Korean NT 2021

    I get emotional thinking about the seniors will retire from NT after watching them for so many years. But again they have serve their country well and need to think about what they will do next. They still play in club so Im okay with that. At least I can still watch them play😢 I do hope they get what they aim for this coming olympic. It's not going to be easy but in sports anything can happen. I trust Lavarini and the team. Now everyone is curious where KYK will go for the next season😂 I get excited everytime news about her come out.


    There's not so much option for OP though. In domestic league, mostly OP is played by the import players. For OH, Soyoung and Sohwi are quite good in domestic league but they might face difficulties in international level. We'll see how they perform in VNL. MB i think as usual duo YHJ, KSJ. Juah performance last season might secure her place in NT. Not so sure about Han songyi. Choices for libero and setter are interesting. I wonder when they will release the 2021 roster

    So for the VNL, each country can only bring a total of 25 people into the bubble, including the coaching staff. Assuming they bring 18 players (14 person roster + 4 reserves), I tried to fill out who they could bring to Italy. Lavarini did say he wanted to experiment with a few players.


    OH: KYK, Lee So-young, Kang So-hwi, Park Jeong-ah, Pyo Seung-ju

    MB: Yang Hyo-jin, Kim Su-ji, Han Song-yi, Lee Ju-ah, Park Eun-jin

    OP: Kim Hee-jin, Jeong Ji-yun, Ha Hye-jin/Moon Jeong-won

    S: Yeom Hye-seon, Ahn Hye-jin

    Li: Yim Myung-ok, Oh Ji-young, Kim Yeon-gyeong


    Obviously, after the expulsion of our twin gangsters starters, the team depth took a hit. The setter position is particularly worrying. If one of those two get hurt or don't recuperate 100% (Yeom), we're fucked.


    The OH lineup has depth but except Kim, each of them has glaring weaknesses in their game. Lee So-young is a complete volleyball player who does everything well in V-League, but she's short. I can already see the other teams feasting on her when she's in the front row. Ideally should be a backup to come in from time to time to stabilize the reception or back-row defense.


    Kang So-hwi is a power hitter in V-League, but becomes a paper hitter against a 190+ cm wall. Though, during the VNL 2019, she was two years younger and not the Kang So-hwi of today. Park Jeong-ah is the second-best attacker besides Kim, but she can't receive... After that, Pyo Seung-ju can be useful as a "Joker" who can play any position and slide in to give a breather to the starters. The others are either too short (Go Ye-rim) or not very good...


    So I think the final Tokyo lineup might be:

    OH: KYK, Lee So-young, Kang So-hwi, Pyo Seung-ju (OP)

    OP: Kim Hee-jin, Park Jeong-ah (OH)


    I'm taking Pyo Seung-ju over Jeong Ji-yun because she can receive + her height, experience, and versatility. JJY is too short to be a MB, still too raw to play as OP, and her floor defense is less than desired...


    I have no clue who should be the MBs or the libero at the Olympics.

    Yang hyojin and kim suji as MB are pretty much secured for olympics. mostly because of their height and experience. And currently no one can beat YHJ in that position. Pyo seungju's defense during post season games quite shaky. But maybe just bad day at work i guess. What do you think of Cho songhwa as setter? She done quite well with IBK if not mistaken

    Im not sure about that. Correct me if im wrong but I think she change her position to MB in 2017 when she started to play with KGC. Prior to that, she struggle a lot being a multiplayer during her time at GS. She got selected back to NT in 2019 as MB and stay as backup player. Plus she's in the same team with Yeom Hyeseon the setter. So being a MB might be the best option for now

    South Korean Women's VNL Squad (18 Players)


    S: AN Hye-Jin (GS Caltex), YEUM Hye-Seon (KGC Ginseng), KIM Da-In (Hyundai E&C)

    OH: KIM Yeon-Koung (Heungkuk), LEE So-Young (GS Caltex), KANG So-Hwi (GS Caltex), PYO Seung-Ju (IBK Altos), KIM Ju-Hyang (IBK Altos)

    OP: PARK Jeong-Ah (Expressway), KIM Hee-Jin (IBK Altos), JEONG Ji-Yun (Hyundai E&C)

    MB: YANG Hyo-Jin (Hyundai E&C), KIM Su-Ji (IBK Altos), HAN Song-Yi (KGC Ginseng), PARK Eun-Jin (KGC Ginseng), MOON Myoung-Hwa (GS Caltex)

    Li: OH Ji-Young (KGC Ginseng), YIM Myung-Ok (Expressway)


    Sources: 1, 2, 3



    I have to say there are some surprises in the VNL roster. NT debutants are setter KIM Da-In and middle blocker MOON Myoung-Hwa. Myoung-Hwa has been named in an NT squad before but has never actually gone to a tournament. Shockingly only one play was chosen from Heungkuk and that is KYK. The rest of the NT consist of 4 players from GS Caltex, 4 from KGC Ginseng, 4 from IBK Altos, 3 from Hyundai E&C, and 2 from Expressway.


    The team will convene at the Jincheon Athlete's Village on April 23 and they will head out to Italy for the VNL on May 21. Stefano Lavarini is expected to arrive in South Korea on April 29. Source: 1

    Im expecting lee juah to be in the list but they seem to try new players this time. OH position is pretty much the same. I think KYK will pair with lee soyoung as starter. So now who do you think will play as main setter?Kim Da In is quite surprising though, Im not aware of her performance in Hyundai. Jeong Jiyun role is the same with Heejin, playing as MB in the league but her spike is not bad. Does this list will determine 12 players who will go to Tokyo as well?

    Kim Da-in is a surprise, but we'll never know what she can bring to court, she has that tenacity in her.


    Lee Ju-ah's performance was pretty good in post matches, was Moon Myoung Hwa's stats better? IBK's Ju-hyang is another surprise inclusion. Imo, her performance was so-so, and can be totally off on some days.


    For Olympics, the 2 liberos seem set to go, OPs, should be Heejin and Jongah then. Then Lavarini would select from Left and Centers.


    I would think VNL would be a platform to feel how other teams would be playing (other NTs, i heard didnt play together for at least a year due to covid).


    Cant wait! May/June/July will be the exciting months.

    Each team has not play together for more than a year. Japan & China already started their NT training much earlier if not mistaken.


    For olympics: all the veterans (KYK, YHJ, KSJ,KHJ, PJA, those 2 libero) position are pretty much confirmed. HSY might make it if she play well. Battle for setter is wide open, the best 2 will get selected.


    Well, 15 matches to play. Need to save a lot of internet data next month😂

    Kim Da In is quite short but if her skill is great, should be ok. May not be efficient for blocking when needed.


    Kim Juhyang is a starter for IBK. Yep i agree her performance is not that impressive but maybe there's something in her that the coaches saw. We dont know

    I'd have to say an hye Jin would do better out of the 3 setters. kim da in is tooo short for a setter, especially against other teams. yeum hyesun and an hye Jin are about the same height (1cm difference) but AHJ has better block height. she will do well if she doesn't get intimated or nervous on big stages.

    MOON Myoung-Hwa is a surprise, but if you look at it, Yang Hyo-jin and Kim Su-ji are pretty much fixed, so you only need someone to complement them and bring some skillsets that they don't possess. Yang Hyo-jin is your main blocker, but she's slow. Her knees are also done, making her unable to perform any attack patterns that require mobility. Kim Su-ji is a slide attack specialist whose strength is exactly mobility, but she's not the most prolific blocker.


    For the third option, they need a tall blocking presence with faster legs than Yang Hyo-jin (not that Moon is really fast, but she's got the height...). Of course, it would be great if she could score too, but blocking is most important. Park Eun-jin did quite well in that role in 2019. Lee Ju-ah was great in the post-season and would have been my personal choice for the VNL, but she's a Kim Su-ji "type" who plays a similar game (although she brings different abilities). Han Song-yi is a great blocker in V-League and can do what Kim Su-ji does, but she's still unproven as a MB in international games and she's another pair of old legs (although still pretty fast despite her age)... May the best MB win!


    Kim Da-in is another interesting one. But honestly, if you HAD to bring three setters, who else could you have picked??? Cho (Slow) Song-hwa? Lee Go-eun? Kim Da-sol? I'm taking Da-in before any of them easily, especially when we're trying to implement a fast style of volleyball. For the Olympics, just bring Yeum Hye-seon and Ahn Hye-jin and call it a day.


    Pyo Seung-ju and Kim Ju-hyang will have to fight for that last OH spot. Obviously, with Lee Jae-yeong available, that spot wouldn't have been available, but what can we do... Both have been inconsistent over the last season. For Pyo, it's because she's been asked to do something she never was in her career, be THE leader responsible for both the attack and reception. Like Kim Mi-yeon, Go Ye-rim, Hwang Min-kyeong and Choi Eun-ji, Pyo Seung-ju is a very serviceable number 2 OH. She also has a height advantage and is a better attacker than those names mentioned. It was just too much for her this year as she had to fend off all the serves with a target on her back, while expected to be the second scorer behind Lazareva, and mentoring (carrying) both Kim Ju-hyang and Yuk Seo-young. But as the 12th player who can replace both an OH or an OP at any given time during the game to create a spark, bring me Pyo any day!


    In Kim Ju-hyang's case, her inconsistency seems to derive more from a lack of confidence and experience than a lack of skill. It was her first year being a starter and she played stiff and nervously in many games, like someone overwhelmed after realizing the weight she has to carry. She would have greatly benefited from having a real coach who can take her on the side in-game and calm her down. I am eager to see what Lavarini can do with her. She has occasionally shown she could carry that burden and bring her game to another level, like that playoff-clinching match when Lazareva was not 100% and the team needed someone to step up. Even if she doesn't go to the Olympics, this will be a great experience to take the next step in her career.

    Quote from 2YEONG

    I'd have to say an hye Jin would do better out of the 3 setters. kim da in is tooo short for a setter, especially against other teams. yeum hyesun and an hye Jin are about the same height (1cm difference) but AHJ has better block height. she will do well if she doesn't get intimated or nervous on big stages.

    At this point, do you see Ahn hyejin as main setter? Yeum hyeseon has not play any games since she got injured last time. But of course she is the most experienced setter there