Volleyball EC in Italy Red Dragons
Ferre Reggers played a remarkable European Championship, for example with 27 points in the 3-1 win against Estonia. Yet he himself is not completely satisfied. — © EPA-EFE
The vice world champion faltered for a moment, but a clever Poland still sealed the fate of the Red Dragons at the European Volleyball Championship. But saying goodbye with a 3-1 defeat against the number one in the world is absolutely no shame. We looked back with spearhead Ferre Reggers, who once again showed his talent.
Even though our national volleyball team delivered a performance to be proud of, the mood within the core is rather sad. “It was quite quiet on the bus to our hotel,” says Ferre Reggers. “Not that the heads were down, but there was still disappointment in the team.”
The reaction of top talent Reggers shortly after the elimination against Poland speaks volumes. It says a lot about how the Dragons’ confidence has grown during the tournament. “Just like against Serbia and Germany (lost 3-1 and 3-2 respectively, ed.)“We also had plenty of opportunities to do more against Poland,” said the still only 20-year-old opponent from Pellenberg. “That we were impressed in the first two sets? I don’t agree. It was still Poland on the other side and they are simply world class. But we did make them doubt and that’s great, because their faces looked like thunder when we made it 2-1.”
Praised abroad
Zanini’s guard was indeed impressive at times during the European Championship. Ferre Reggers was often the first player to be quoted, also by the foreign press. Consider, for example, his incredible 27 points in the 3-1 win against Estonia. “It is an indication that I can compete in Europe, but for me personally this has been a tournament with ups and downs,” he concludes. “I thought I was never top for the entire match. Now, I’m still young, so that’s part of it, but I really have to learn to deal with it better. That’s why I try to keep an eye on experienced guys like Sam Deroo and Stijn D’Hulst. In any case, I have grown mentally, physically and tactically.”
“For me personally this has been a tournament with ups and downs. I thought I was never top for the entire match.”
Ferre Reggers, Red Dragons
The main attacker is remarkably critical of himself, but shows the right top sports mentality. “We have to be hard on ourselves if we want to get better. On the one hand, there was certainly more potential against Serbia and Germany. If we harvest more points there, we would be in the 1/8th finals against the Netherlands and that is a world of difference with Poland. On the other hand, we faced a tough course with world champion Italy as our opponent. All in all, everyone was disappointed after Poland, but of course we also showed great things and that is hopeful for the future.”
The Red Dragons will soon be able to work on their ranking (FIVB-22) and therefore their future again, because at the end of this month they will travel to China for the Olympic qualifying tournament. There they will again compete against Poland (FIVB-1), Argentina (FIVB-6), the Netherlands (FIVB-10), Canada (FIVB-15), Mexico (FIVB-13), Bulgaria (FIVB-32) and China (FIVB-30).