Posts by JoanaBG

I know that rules are rules, but it would be awful to have the result of a match like that overturned on a technicality.

Plak I'm sure she could have taken a swing at the ball with hair and still scored a point! If she was a tennis player she'd be like Petra Kvitova, who is capable of beating everyone 6-1 6-1 when she catches fire - the problem is that it happens once a year. Besides, I'm sure no one saw a performance like that coming and nobody was prepared for it, so it was a total surprise factor. It will probably be different the next time. Be it as it may, she was a total game changer and the difference between the two teams. If you look at the individual performances, Novara and Scandicci were rather evenly matched - two dominant OPPs (and actually, Egonu for her standards had a rather quiet game), one MB playing very well with the other taking a nap, one OH with a good scoring contribution, good libero performances... but Plak >>>> Vasileva, and that was the key.

It wasn't the first time this season that Malinov completely ignored Adenizia for no apparent reason and it's really strange.

No, it's not available yet. I guess Terzić is taking his sweet time submitting the roster, like always. We'll know it soon.

Padar wrote:

LMAO. I honestly think it's unfair to allow people applying for banned substance for medical use.

I don't think so. Those lists of banned substances are ridiculously restrictive. Lots of stuff that regular people take on daily basis are there. People have lost Olympic medals and had their careers ruined over total nonsense, like over-the-counter cough medicine, for example.

I think it's fair that athletes get to be treated like anyone else in their position would. Besides, you can't get an exemption for the really hardcore stuff like anabolic steroids anyway.

USAvolleyfan wrote:

Seeing how Carlini, Lloyd and Hancock perform, I'm kinda scared for the team.

I was actually pretty impressed with Hancock earlier in the season, I thought she was doing a great job. Her performance has dropped off a bit lately, but in general she has improved a lot.

Carlini has obviously showed nothing that would indicate she should be the starter on NT, but then again, US NT doesn't have an Egonu on it, so it might cause her to reevaluate her approach to the game.

penguin wrote:

You have a replay on SK2 02:05 AM, so you can record it

I know, but those replays are rarely full matches, especially if they go to 5 sets, they usually cut some part out. And the match was shown on SK5 which doesn't have a replay on demand option. Oh well. I should have known better,

beri wrote:

But why the hell they're booing their own player...

Italian crowds can be tough. I remember a couple of seasons ago when Sylla was still in Bergamo there was a game where she literally couldn't put a serve in, some of them didn't even reach the net, she must have had like 6-7 service errors and after the last one her home crowd started boooing her.

God dammit, I didn't realize the game was today, so not only am I spoiled for the result, but I also forgot to record it and now I'll only get to see a (probably) badly truncated replay. And the match actually sounded exciting for a change.

As for Chirichella, I think we can all agree she's having a miserable season, which can happen for a variety of reasons, but she's proven her worth before and I don't think it's right to write her off completely just yet.

According to the Sport Klub commentator last night:

Brakočević, Nwakalor, Lloyd, Vasileva -> Novara

Sloetjes -> Scandicci

Nizetich -> Cuneo

He sounded like it was a done deal.

I was so looking forward to the Novara vs Scandicci series, but these two games so far didn't really deliver. At least the second match wasn't total garbage like the first one, but I expected more. Scandicci is such a frustrating team, the one time both of their MBs perform well, no one else does. Apart from some good blocking, Vasileva's contribution in these two matches was less than zero. They might as well start with Kosheleva the next time. Haak has also been far from impressive lately. I wonder if's she already mentally checked out and is in Vakifbank in her mind already.

Novara was simply too solid. They would have probably won 3-0 if not for that horrendous streak of errors at the start of the 3rd set.

It's a best of 5 series. The 3rd place match also.

saishuu wrote:

Naaah, Joana was coming for me because I came for Ognjenovic and her behavior. It's okay though, it's not like I didn't expect something like this to happen when I said what I said, especially here.

Just to make one thing clear - that had nothing to do with Ognjenović. I just found it funny (in the real sense of that word, nothing negative) how you went for the jugular of two players, incidentally, both legendary setters, in such short time. I would have acted the same had it been any other player instead of Ognjenović. Defending the honour of my favourite players (which Maja, as much as I like and admire her actually isn't) is not a matter of life or death to me. Yes, I wanted to tease you a little bit - because I actually like you as a poster and thought it wouldn't be a big deal! - but my intention was most certainly not to start a fight. If I had known it would come down to this, I wouldn't have said anything. But, it's better to have some things out in the open.

And that's really all I have to say about this.

Sisko95 wrote:

I continue to be amazed by how little it takes for a fight to break out around here.

You're surprised that someone would not appreciate being accused of hating an entire nation based on completely nothing? Well, don't be.

Being associated with chauvinistic sentiments of any kinds is something I do NOT take lightly, and the only other time I've been this openly rude to another poster (which I fully own up) is when crovolley did something similar last year.

But regardless of this pointless discussion, it is increasingly clear to me that I no longer fit in on this board, for a number of reasons.

I'm not mad, though. Paranoia is a real bitch. It can be managed, though.

Uhm. I just found it funny that he trashed two famous setters within a couple of days. Nothing more, nothing less. And please, I was the one attacking Venturini? Jesus Christ. And you have the nerve to talk to someone about reading comprehension.

There really is no point in posting on this trainwreck on a board anymore.

That was such a dumpster fire of a match. No rhythm at all and lots of choking. Novara was being handed the match on a silver platter, but they gave it away with 700 service errors. Malinov's performance at the end of the 4th set was one of the most embarrassing displays I've seen recently and there's literally NO ONE on Scandicci's side that really stood out, but they managed to win somehow, so congrats, I guess?

I agree that Barbolini should have just kept the 2nd line-up the entire time. They were doing a really nice job and you could see that Scandicci's players were thrown off their game as they weren't expecting it. And once again Carlini forgets how to play when Egonu enters the court. Chirichella was having her best game of the season by far, at one point her attacking percentage was nearly 80% and then Carling starts feeding her with useless sets like always and it goes way down.

So they really did not gain anything here. They lost the match and Egonu once again lost tons of energy, so a total lose-lose situation. But Scandicci's performance doesn't inspire much confidence either, so who the hell knows.

One thing is for sure, though. If either of these two teams play like this in the final, Conegliano is going to eat them alive.

Yes, but is she more disgusting than Ognjenović?

Kakolewska is the epitome of Euro Defensive Liabilities, as sitenoise calls them and I agree she's a very inefficient server, but she's mighty fine at her primary job, which is to make sure the ball stays on the other side on the net. Plus her spiking skills are more than decent.
I'd say she's had a perfectly fine season compared to some bigger and more experienced names, who have been wildly unstable (Stevanović), miserable and looking like they'd rather be anywhere else but on the court (Chirichella) or a total non-factor (Arrighetti).

Is there any player left who hasn't been connected with Conegliano? I mean, if all those rumours proved to be true, they might as well cancel the Serie A for the next season as there wouldn't be enough players left for the other clubs to form their rosters.

"Out of this world" is just a standard expression. Lots of players have been called like that. There's nothing bad about it.

HUGE congrats to Firenze! I didn't think they had it in them. They looked down and out and yet they still kept believing and fighting and almost caused a big upset. They're such a likeable team, too. IMO Dijkema's had a rather blah season, with a slightly better setter they could have achieved even greater things. That said, it really hasn't been a season for the setters in Serie A. Apart from Wolosz, no one's really stood out.

Novara survives again, but this will be the end of the road for them if they keep it like this. Egonu must be running on fumes at this point (if she's indeed not an alien!) and even if she was fully fresh, they need more than just her and Veljković contributing on the court when they take on Scandicci, that's finally looking like a real team. Of course, now that I said it, watch it become yet another Egonu vs Haak battle.

If a player ever did that on purpose and the word got out, I'm pretty sure she'd be blacklisted by all serious teams - because they wouldn't want to risk such a thing happening to them at some point in the future.