Nigeria’s female volleyball national team are seeking a consolation victory from their upcoming classification match at the ongoing CAVB Women’s Africa Nations Championship in Nairobi, Kenya, Sports247 reports.
This is sequel to their ouster by the hosts and defending champions, Kenya, who ended Nigeria’s hope of reaching the quarter-finals with a 3-0 defeat in their round of 16 clash on Saturday.
Backed by massive home support, the Kenyans took the sets 25-21, 25-17 and 25-15 to romp into the last eight of the continental championship, but Nigeria’s coach, Elishama Elam was left commending his players for their gallant efforts.
Elam praised his players for putting up a strong fight in the opening set, as they pushed the defending champions hard, before Kenya eventually prevailed 25-21, then stepped up their intensity to seal a three straight sets victory.
He identified Nigeria’s service errors as one of the key factors that stopped them from making the opening set more competitive, then added that the experience will help in a rebuilding process, as he stayed positive for better results in the future.
With his team now eliminated from the championship, Elam turned his focus on finishing the competition strongly through the classification matches, with a view that their ability to put up a tough fight against the defending champions will propel them.
Elam pointed out, “We gave a good fight. They really played what they deserved. We gave the Kenyans a run for their money. It was not just a pushover match. It was a good fight
“If you look at the first set that we lost to the Kenyans 25-21, there were eight service errors. If we had converted only four of them, you can see that the scoreline would have been different.
“We are going to prepare for the classification match. We hope to finish in the ninth or 10th position, by the special grace of God. Being a young team that we are trying to build, the next time we meet, I think the story will not be like this.”
