It was all change for the Amazons at the first game of the season. New players, a new venue and only a few weeks of training under their belt meant this game against an experienced Staffs team was going to be challenging and boy did it live up to expectation!

The first set started well with some consistent serving from Sharkey and some strong blocking from Gore and Hughes and Amazons found themselves in front at the first technical. However, as the second technical approached, the errors began to creep in with both teams trading points one for one. Experienced hitters from Staffs were managing to find gaps in our defence despite some excellent pick-ups from Dellãmas. Towards the end of the set, some well-placed spikes from Valuta and Podholicka made it appear that Amazons may be able to claw it back but a string of strong serves from Staffs meant the set finished 25-21 in favour of the visitors.

The second set began similarly to the first with some well placed serves from Gore combined with some beautiful sets by Bellamy and Amazons once again found themselves ahead at the first technical. Once again, Staffs fought back to the second technical as they pressured Amazons with challenging serves and powerful spikes down the line. However, Amazons rallied in the front court resulting in Staffs making several errors and allowing Amazons to pull away. Howarth closed the set with two superb services. 25-21 Amazons and one set all.

At the start of set three, the energy was building on court. The two teams were inseparable over the first 10 or so points. Excellent defence from Dellãmas and Hughes kept the rallies alive and Gore was causing issues for the middle hitters from Staffs. The turning point of the set came at point 12 with a string of services from Polholicka and pressure from Sharkey front court which put Amazons 6 points clear. Powerful services from Valuta polished off the third set 25-18. 2-1 Amazons.

The beginning of set 4 didn’t start well for Amazons after well-placed serves from Staffs caused confusion and errors at the back. However, a string of 4 serves from Sharkey combined with some excellent spikes from Valuta cross-court put Amazons back in contention. The two sides continued to trade points. Dellãmas and Bellamy worked hard to keep the ball alive for the front court attackers and the scores were tight at the second technical time out. Unfortunately, Staffs found their rhythm and some well-placed tips and challenging serves allowed them to pull away despite excellent efforts front court from Hughes. The set ended 25-22 to Staffs. Two sets all.

The final set began well with Hughes, Gore and Valuta working well in formation at the front, pressuring the Staffs defence and edging out a two-point advantage. Combined with some perfect passes from Dellãmas and some well placed spikes from Polholicka, Amazons were back in front at change over. A few sequences from Bellamy and Sharkey took the score to 11-9. However, Staffs were not giving up easily as they once again found gaps in our defence taking the score to 13-13. Both teams continued to trade point for point with Valuta determined to break thorough Staffs blocking formation. Hughes made it match point with a cracking spike through 2 and Polholicka finished off the game with an excellent spike through the middle. 18-16 and 3-2 to Amazons. Overall, an excellent start to the season and hopefully more success to come next week.