Giving gifts is forbidden in the quarterfinals

Created: 03/11/2022, 19:50

According to coach Max Hauser, the volleyball players from Herrsching (l. Luuc van der Ent, r. Tim Peter) only have a chance against German record champions VfB Friedrichshafen with a 100 percent performance in the quarter-finals.

© Andrea Jaksch

WWK Volleys Herrsching in the quarter-finals meet record champions VfB Friedrichshafen for the German championship.

The first game of the best-of-three series takes place in Ulm on Saturday evening.

Herrsching

– The volleyball players are the first German professional league to start the play-offs this weekend.

Right in the middle: the WWK Volleys Herrsching.

The Ammersee team face VfB Friedrichshafen in the quarter-finals for the German championship.

Last Sunday, the people from Constance won the DVV Cup for the 17th time and should go into the play-off series with a corresponding tailwind.

Game one takes place on Saturday at 8 p.m. in the ratiopharm arena in Neu-Ulm.

The second leg will take place next Friday in Munich's Audi Dome.

Since this season, the Häfler have been playing their home games in the Danube town of Ulm, which is almost 100 kilometers away.

Herrschings coach Max Hauser does not necessarily see this as a home advantage for Friedrichshafen.

As is well known, the time-honored but dilapidated ZF Arena on the shore of Lake Constance was closed forever in autumn 2020, and the alternative site on the Friedrichshafen exhibition center that was used in the corona-related spectator-free season last summer was needed again.

Since there was no adequate venue in the vicinity, the German record champions and cup winners had to relocate to the Baden-Württemberg-Bavarian border town.

In the pre-season, Herrschinger won 3-0 against Friedrichshafen.

So the WWK Volleys know how to win in the ratiopharm arena.

The game in the regular season took place behind closed doors in the VfB training hall on Lake Constance.

As with the 0:3 in the Audi Dome, the Herrschinger had little to order in the 1:3 in the second leg.

"If Friedrichshafen is playing at the limit, it will be difficult if not impossible for us," says Max Hauser.

The Herrschinger trainer estimates the chances of getting ahead at 40 percent.

After the 3-0 win over Netzhoppers Königs Wusterhausen two weeks ago, Hauser and his coaching team had already dealt with United Volleys Frankfurt as quarter-final opponents.

But then those responsible for the Volleyball Bundesliga (VBL) deducted points from Hesse and scrambled the final table and thus the play-off schedules again (we reported).

From a purely sporting point of view, Frankfurt would have been the more feasible task.

Hauser sees it pragmatically: "It's definitely the bigger name."

With a view to the second leg next Friday in the Audi Dome, Hauser hopes that the German figurehead will attract many spectators.

In addition to the Berlin Recycling Volleys, VfB Friedrichshafen is the German driving force.

13 championship titles, 17 cup successes and a Champions League victory in 2007 adorn the VfB letterhead.

At the WWK Volleys Herrsching they would be happy if they qualified for the championship semi-finals in the sixth attempt.

In the 2017/2018 season against United Volleys Frankfurt and in the 2018/2019 season against Hypo Tirol Alpenvolleys Haching, Herrsching was able to force at least a third game.

In terms of personnel, Hauser has plenty to draw from.

Jonas Kaminski and Philipp Schumann duel on the diagonal, on the outside captain Tim Peter, Jori Mantha and Jordi Ramon fight for both places in the starting lineup.

Hauser is happy: “We can rotate a lot.

This makes it harder for us to calculate.” A clear line should not be apparent to the opposing scouts.

However, the plan only works if “we get our game through 100 percent, we are not allowed to distribute any gifts.

If we gave everything, I can accept it if we drop out against Friedrichshafen.”