The battle for the women’s volleyball championship starts today in Kuusamo. The home team, which has already won the cup championship, will be met by LP Kangasala, who has been tough for the last two seasons due to the corona.
Nina Old House,
Maija Kautto,
Anu Karttunen
The women’s volleyball championship league will have a new champion this spring, when Kuusamo, who dominated the regular season, and LP Kangasala, the third in the regular season, will meet in the finals.
For the last 18 years, the champion has always come from the Salo – Hämeenlinna axis, but this time Kuusamo dropped Hämeenlinna to the bronze match with a victory of 3–0. LP Kangasala, on the other hand, scored all five matches before the ten-time Finnish champion LP Viesti was defeated 3–2.
Kuusamo won bronze in the spring of 2019 and silver last season, so now the team that lost only three matches during the season wants the championship more than ever.
– We have worked hard to stay at the top of the league. Now the club has taken its place from there and of course last season’s silver wants to shine into gold, the team’s libero Sanna Häkkinen told Sport.
Häkkinen made his debut in the league 15.5 years ago, but only now will he be able to experience the atmosphere of the finals for the first time. The opportunity to play in the championship was one of the reasons why he dared to leave everything in Tampere for a while and move to Kuusamo.
According to Häkkinen, good work has been done in the area in recent years to make the volleyball culture of Koillismaa and Kuusamo so good. It has required the work of the club organization, the Manager, the player coordinator and the entire volleyball division. The necessary money has been found to get the right players into the team and the team has provided the audience with a quality game throughout the season.
– Getting to the finals is a real big deal for me too. This has been a long journey and one of my dreams, Häkkinen said.
If the people of Kuusamo are hungry in their championship yacht, then LP Kangasala may have one if at least one other reason to be at least as hungry. Two years ago, the playoffs were not played because of the corona pandemic. When the season was interrupted, Kangasala was almost level with Kuusamo in the regular season.
The following season, Kangasala pushed from victory to victory and had won the first semi-final game against Kuusamo when the team was put into a corona quarantine and the games ended.
– Yes, the hunger is very strong. Last season, after the games ended, we didn’t wait long, but we immediately started thinking about that again next season. This is, in a way, the finale for three years for us. Now we get the job done by playing. That is important to us, LP Kangasala’s coach Arttu Keränen says Sport.
No more hokokkok
Where the people of Kuusamo have received more than a week of flutes, the players of Kangasala have had less rest time. According to Keränen, the team has minor ailments as a burden, but it is at stake at this point. The most important thing is that the players do not have any trouble that would prevent them from playing.
In the final series, every player is needed, as both Häkkinen and Keränen expect tight twists from the games.
– We’ve been playing steadily all season, and we have a team that doesn’t really have a weak link. Even though we have played different players, we have still been able to win almost all the games in the regular season, Häkkinen said.
– It tells about the extent of the material. We have 12 good players, and I think it also plays a big role in this long series.
The games will start on Tuesday in Kuusamo, but after that the next two matches will be played in Kangasala. Keränen believes that the team is mentally ready to play and withstand the pressures of the game.
– In a tight situation, you need to be able to play that own volleyball and rely on your own strengths. At this point, neither has any more hockey picks or new ones in the game. The strengths that have been achieved so far are played and then the superiority is measured, Keränen said.
A familiar opponent makes you think about tactics
Kuusamo and Kangasala met three times during the season in the regular season and Kuusamo left the field twice as a winner. The duo also played for the Finnish Cup in January. Reigning champion LP Kangasala was unable to renew the victory, but Kuusamo took the win 3–1.
– The opponent is familiar. They know us and we know what they are doing. That is why we have tried to think about what kind of tactical changes they are trying to make, for example, against our good defense, Häkkinen said.
– And the opposite. Yes, we too have had to think about what drugs we come up with to get points really done.
Keränen knows that his team will have a strong offensive and defensive team with players who have enough dimension. However, he assures that the team has the drugs to make the home team crash.
– If we can playfully continue where we left off against Viesti in the semifinals – strong defense, strong self-defense and a good passing game, which enables good combat play – then we are well on our way, Keränen said.
– We are required to play bold, smart offensive play in these games for the result to come.
Häkkinen believes that in the opening match, the home team will receive good support from the audience. He still remembers well from previous seasons how difficult it was for Kuusamo to play when the auditoriums were full. Häkkinen intends to enjoy the support he receives from the home crowd in the match.
– The opponent has players I have played against for many years and they are in exactly the same situation as us: they want to win its first championship. There is definitely an absurd battle ahead, Häkkinen predicted.