Israel routs hosts Latvia at #EuroVolleyU22M qualifier

In their second match of the #EuroVolleyU22M Pool D qualifier, the Latvian men’s national team lost 0-3 (18-25, 16-25, 16-25) to Israel on Friday at the Daugavpils Olympic Centre.

At the beginning of the game, Ņikita Dimitrijevs made two blocks, giving Latvia an early 3:0 lead. However, the score then shifted to 6:9 and 16:21 in favour of the visitors, with Israeli player Mark Rura delivering an ace. The guests earned the next two points as well, and Latvia lost the first set 18-25.

In the second set, Latvia fell behind 6:11, with Israeli player Yuval Chansky standing out with a strong serve. The Israelis extended their lead to ten points. A hit from Armands Rokjāns helped reduce the deficit slightly, but the set still ended 16-25.

Early in the third set, Latvia struggled again (3:7), with Israeli player Shay Mayo Liberman making a block. Latvia put together a four-point streak (8:8), capitalising on an error from the visitors. Israel then earned the next four points. A block by Dimitrijevs helped close the gap to 11:13, but another block by Lior Vili Kopilevich gave Israel an eight-point advantage. Latvia eventually lost the final set 16-25.

Latvia’s top scorers were Armands Rokjāns (eight points), Ņikita Dimitrijevs (seven points, including four blocks), and Kristers Landzāns (six). For Israel, Mark Rura and Shay Mayo Liberman scored 16 and 13 points, respectively.

Kristers Landzāns, Latvian player: “I think we lacked aggressiveness from the start. The Israelis started clearly stronger, more aggressively, and more emotionally. That’s exactly what we were missing. We wanted to win and did everything we could, but I don’t know... A lot of our players also play Beach Volleyball and couldn’t help out this time, so our team is quite young.”

Mārcis Obrumans, head coach of the Latvian team: “This time more things didn’t work than did. It was Israel’s strength and our inability. It’s hard to say in which game elements we were able to counter them. Israel didn’t particularly surprise us - they just made fewer mistakes and served aggressively. As a result, we often played against a well-structured and tall double block. This led to many errors in our attacks, while the Israelis played very confidently.”

Noam Katz, head coach of Israel: “The team was well prepared. We studied how Latvia plays - they deserve a lot of credit for taking part in last year’s European Championship. We believe we made the right steps to win the match. Yesterday we lost to Poland, but it was a good match. Poland is a strong team - though they won, we knew we played well.”

Will Israel qualify for the finals? “Since we already suffered a loss, there is a chance we can still qualify as one of the best second-place teams. That will depend on tomorrow’s match against Croatia. We need to be just as prepared as today and do our job,” said Katz.

Impressions of Latvia? “Latvia is a great country. I was here back in 1995 as a young player training during a tournament in Riga. It seems the country has developed a lot. I really like the people here – they are very helpful and pleasant,” praised Katz.

In the other match of the day, Poland defeated Croatia 3-0 (25-10, 25-21, 25-17).

Group standings after Day 2: Poland two wins and five points, Israel one win and four points, Latvia one win and three points, Croatia zero wins and zero points. 

Latvia’s head coach on the group situation: “We have played decently against Poland’s team in this age group before. Now they are the leaders of the qualification group, and we have no more room for error. I hope today’s loss will be a big lesson. On Saturday, we must come with a different energy and play against Poland.”

The final stage of #EuroVolleyU22M scheduled for next year will include the five group winners and the two best second-placed teams, joining the host nation. Players born on or after January 1, 2005, will compete in the final round in Albufeira, Portugal, from June 29 to July 4, 2026.