I’m fast-tracking this one to get it out before the event starts. Don’t worry, the NCAA series will go on, even now that college season has begun. And a quick aside on that — I didn’t dive into match coverage right away the last two seasons, so I don’t think I will this year either. I’d give it till late next month.
Anyway, Pool D at worlds. Here are the teams:
Belgium
France
Iran
Italy
Puerto Rico
United States
To borrow a term from soccer parlance, this is definitely the ‘Group of Death.’ It’s probably pretty likely which four teams will emerge, but they’ll definitely emerge battle-tested, and it could be in just about any order.
BELGIUM
BELGIUMCurrent FIVB world ranking: 24th
2014 World League finish: 11th
2012 Summer Olympics finish: Did not participate
2010 World Championship finish: Did not participate
Best-ever World Championship finish: 8th (1970)
Bluntly — do not look past the Belgians. Are they a team who can win the championship, well, no, but they’re a team who can wreck your day. And possibly your own designs on the championship. There are some championship contenders in this pool, and a bad day against a team like Belgium could give them a decidedly unfavourable draw in round 2 — or maybe even cost them a ticket to it.
This will be Belgium’s first participation at worlds since 1978. They don’t have a huge record of success in major international tournaments — 2014 was also their first time at World League, and they’ve been at the Olympics only once, in 1968. But have a look at the 2013 European League tournament. Granted, it didn’t have any marquee teams, but the Belgians were nigh untouchable in that event, winning all 12 of their pool play matches and the knockout semifinal and championship final. Fourteen match wins and just 7 sets lost along the way. That’s why I think they’re a team that can ruin your day if you’re not bringing your best against them; their best probably isn’t too shabby.
Players to watch for: Floor captain for the Belgians is setter Frank Depestele (jersey #5). He didn’t play in the latter weeks of World League, but did play in the first four weeks, when the team went 5-3. He’s definitely the team’s elder statesman; he’ll turn 37 during the tournament. As far as hitters, it’s kind of a cast-of-thousands thing from the looks of it. A guy with upwards of 20 kills one night may not even start the next night. Gert Van Walle (jersey #12) and Bram Van Den Dries (jersey #1), both listed at opposite hitter, are two such players. On the left side, young Sam Deroo (age 22, jersey #3) was a pretty consistent scorer throughout World League. The Belgians have a decent amount of size up the middle, including 2.08m Simon Van De Voorde (jersey #10) but don’t seem to frequently put up very impressive blocking numbers.
You look at the six in this pool, and you think you can pick four from that six pretty easily, but if any of those four take their foot off the gas, watch out for Belgium.
FRANCE
FRANCECurrent FIVB world ranking: 13th
2014 World League finish: 10th
2012 Summer Olympics finish: Did not participate
2010 World Championship finish: 11th
Best-ever World Championship finish: Bronze medal (2002)
Nobody’s gonna be taking France lightly; they’re a very entrenched volleyball nation. They’re always in the conversation, and have a World League silver medal from 2006 in addition to their world championship bronze. They’re kind of a second-tier team, lacking the medal haul of some of the true powerhouses, but they frequently beat handily the lower-order teams. They won their World League pool and took the Volleyroos to five sets in the Group 2 final. They won’t have too many easy days in this pool, though.
Players to watch for: The French floor captain is another setter, Benjamin Toniutti (jersey #6). Outside hitter Antonin Rouzier (jersey #4) was the team’s most consistent scorer during World League. I’m not really familiar with him, but he is a veteran of the team’s last run in the world championship tourney. Other names with which I’m more familiar, like Earvin Ngapeth (jersey #9) and ol’ Kevin Tillie from UC Irvine (jersey #7) are on the roster for worlds, and were there in World League too. They didn’t get as many sets as Rouzier though. Middle blocker Nicolas Le Goff (jersey #14) is pretty prolific at that position.
It would be a disappointment for the French if they didn’t at least advance to round 2.
IRAN
IRANCurrent FIVB world ranking: 11th
2014 World League finish: 4th
2012 Summer Olympics finish: Did not participate
2010 World Championship finish: Joint 19th (last)
Best-ever World Championship finish: Joint 19th (1998, 2010)
Iran are a team way on the upswing. They were kind of a “grow the game” sort of entry into last year’s World League, and turned a pretty impressive 9th place. Then they went into the hardest pool in this year’s World League (with Italy, Brazil, and Poland) and completely held their own, as all four teams went 6-6. This is still a team that has never medalled at an event any more prestigious than the AVC Asian Championship (though they had a chance for World League bronze this year). They’ve come from obscurity to being a team that if they lost in the group stage, it would be a disappointment. And it took almost no time to achieve that status. Colour me impressed. They’ve never made the Olympics, but at this rate, you may well see them in Rio.
Players to watch for: Here’s another team captained by their setter, Saeid Marouf (jersey #4). He’s been the team’s leader since before their recent renaissance, well earning the distinction of being a team leader. Middle blocker Mohammad Mousavi (jersey #6) is another guy who’s been a fixture for a few years now. Pin hitters Amir Ghafour (jersey #10) and Mojtaba Mirzajanpour (jersey #12) are more of the ‘new blood,’ but were both consistent producers in World League, and should handle the backbone scoring for the team.
One caveat with the recent Iranian resurgence is that they’ve usually played better at home than on the road. Most teams, in all sports, do, but it was fairly dramatic in World League, as they won five home matches and just one (albeit in Brazil) on the road. So how they acclimate to Poland may remain to be seen. But I’ve gotta pencil them through to the second pool round.
ITALY
ITALYCurrent FIVB world ranking: 3rd
2014 World League finish: Bronze medal
2012 Summer Olympics finish: Bronze medal
2010 World Championship finish: 4th
Best-ever World Championship finish: Champions (1990, 1994, 1998)
Italy are right up there with Russia and Brazil as one of the perennial true powerhouses of the sport. Nobody wants to look at the calendar and see Italy coming up, that’s for damned sure. Home to (perhaps-not-too-) arguably the best professional league in the world, Italy is a veritable mecca for volleyball, and their international history shows it. They’ve won the World League 8 times, the European Championship 6 times, World Championship thrice, and have 5 Olympic medals in their history (though they’ve never gotten Olympic gold, oddly enough). You think ‘volleyball,’ and ‘Italy’ shouldn’t come to mind too much later.
Players to watch for: Middle blocker Emanuele Birarelli (jersey #15) is the floor captain, but realistically the star of the show is opposite hitter Ivan Zaytsev (jersey #9). He can quite simply do it all — hit off any kind of set, from anywhere on the floor, serve like crazy, he’s got the size to be a solid blocker (2.02m) ….just a true all-around talent. Setter Dragan Travica (jersey #13) is widely regarded as one of the best in the world, if not the best in the world, and he’s also a deadly server. Middle blockers Thomas Beretta (jersey #1) and Matteo Piano (jersey #14), outside hitter Simone Parodi (jersey #3), and opposite hitter Luca Vettori (jersey #4) are all names I remember from past tournaments, and they’re all here all over again. But probably, Italy have just as many talented players whose names I don’t necessarily recognise. A cursory glance at scoresheets shows outside hitter Filippo Lanza (jersey #10), who has never played a quadrennial tournament for the Italians, put up some solid numbers in a few matches during World League as well.
Deep team, talented team. They’ll make a serious run at this world championship.
PUERTO RICO
PUERTO RICOCurrent FIVB world ranking: 21st
2014 World League finish: Joint 27th (last)
2012 Summer Olympics finish: Did not participate
2010 World Championship finish: Joint 13th
Best-ever World Championship finish: 12th (2006)
Now, I thought Puerto Rico was part of the United States, but they compete separately at the Olympics and, obviously, here too. Does anyone know how that works? Seriously, let me know if you do, because I don’t.
Anyway. The Puerto Ricans get the shortest end of the stick on this pool draw. They’ve actually got a budding/decent world championship history, having made the event for the third straight time and never having been swept out previously. But my goodness, this pool that they’ve landed in is just miles above them. They’ll come out and play some scrappy, fearless volleyball, because what have they got to lose. The obvious answer? A bunch of matches. Which they almost certainly will. They don’t need me to tell them that, but there’s gotta come a point where you face the reality that’s in front of you — they’re not gonna do very well in this pool. Against much easier competition in World League, they won two out of six matches.
Players to watch for: A name that catches my eye is that of opposite hitter Maurice Torres (jersey #11). He was an All-American calibre hitter for the Pepperdine Waves as a collegian and is already pretty entrenched as the team’s leading scorer. He’s an exciting player, and another great server. Setter Edgardo Goas (jersey #2) is another recent American college graduate (just check out the photo on the linked page — he’s in his Penn State jersey), but at least in World League, he was second-string behind floor captain Angel Perez (jersey #6). Ezequiel Cruz (jersey #10) is probably the man to name as Torres’ counterpart on the left pin, but really, it’s Torres who’ll handle the scoring.
I’ll be surprised if the Puerto Ricans win a match.
UNITED STATES
UNITED STATESCurrent FIVB world ranking: 4th
2014 World League finish: Champions
2012 Summer Olympics finish: Joint 5th
2010 World Championship finish: 6th
Best-ever World Championship finish: Champions (1986)
Nobody comes to worlds hotter than the Americans, fresh off their World League triumph. Say what you will about World League in an even-numbered year — and I have, and probably will again — but it’s undeniably a major feather in the collective cap of coach John Speraw and the rest of his men. At the finals at least, no one was resting their starters. The Americans realistically can’t move up in the world rankings in this event unless one of the three juggernauts above them (Italy, Russia, Brazil) has a face-plant, but couple a World League gold with even just a nice run in the World Championship, and there will be no talk of paper tigers. (If there even is any now) The Americans have a major opportunity here, with rewards beyond the obvious — they can really lay claim as one of the major teams to beat heading toward Rio.
Players to watch for: First and foremost is outside hitter Taylor Sander (jersey #3) — and who thought we’d be saying that this early into Sander’s senior international career? Honestly. Anyone who saw him play at BYU knew he was awfully good, but did anyone know he’s be this good at the international level this fast? How often does a rookie win World League MVP? I can’t imagine it’s terribly often. His partner-in-crime on the pins is Matt Anderson (jersey #1), now a veritable ‘old man’ at 27 (to Taylor’s 22). They may just be the best 1-2 punch in the world right now. Still-collegiate Micah Christenson (jersey #11) is on the roster at setter, and other than a faux-sardonic “shouldn’t you be in school?” there’s no reason to think he won’t run the offence again. Floor captain honours for worlds go to middle blocker David Lee (jersey #3) for this event, after Sean Rooney (jersey #2) was so tabbed for World League. Rooney remains on the roster, but it’s difficult to see him playing much, except maybe some garbage time against Puerto Rico, given the wealth of talent ahead of him on the depth chart at OH (even Garrett Muagututia — jersey #18 — got more playing time). I don’t really see a true opposite hitter in the mix for the Americans (am I wrong about that? This is the one section where you all may tell me rather than vice versa), but you don’t always need one. Goodness knows whatever offence the Americans ran in World League worked just fine.
Uncle Sam’s boys are gonna make a serious run at the world crown too.
SWAG time
Didn’t I say this pool was stacked? So much talent here. It’s easy to single out Belgium and Puerto Rico as the teams who will be left behind, and I think it’s likely to the extent that you can’t really predict anything else, but any of the other four teams could win the pool (even relatively-weak France). You could really easily see a scenario where Italy or USA or somebody limp into the second pool round having been 4th place in round 1, and then just wreck the tournament run of Pool A’s winners and runners-up. This pool’s that deep and that talented. They could easily send three teams through to the third round.
1. Italy
2. United States
3. Iran
4. France
5. Belgium
6. Puerto Rico
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