Dukla LIBEREC triumph for 13th time in Czech National Cup Finals
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On Monday, the players of Dukla LIBEREC beat ČEZ KARLOVARSKO in the final of the Czech National Cup to lift the coveted domestic trophy for the 13th time in their club’s history.
Dukla defeated the reigning Czech national league champions in three sets (25-23, 26-24, 28-26). Earlier in the semis, Dukla easily beat Black Volley Beskydy 3-0 (25-18, 25-19, 25-15), while ČEZ KARLOVARSKO did the same in their semi-final with Jihostroj CESKE BUDEJOVICE (25-18, 25-19, 25-21). Some 1,000 fans attended each of the matches.
Kutná Hora hosted the Final Four of the Chance Czech Men’s Volleyball Cup on Sunday, February 26 and Monday, February 27. The teams from Karlovy Vary and Liberec, who hold the highest positions in the current standings of the national league, confirmed their role as event pre-favourites. If Dukla improved their record of 12 trophies in the competition, the team from Karlovy Vary secured their fifth silver medal in Kutná Hora.
Martin Démar“Today we knew we could not lose. We knew the strength of the team from Karlovy Vary, but maybe it helped that we were not the favourites, but the boys defended very well at the net and at the back of the court as well. I really thank them for that and congratulate them on their performance. We were very confident. After reaching the 20-point mark, you could see that they were nervous, even though they extended the sets a little further.”
Head coach of Dukla LIBEREC
“Dukla was smarter and more courageous today. Unlike yesterday, we were not so patient, we gave away too many points and there was no one on the court who could finish the job,” commented Jiří Novák, coach of ČEZ KARLOVARSKO.