National cup finals coincide with return to ‘new normal’ for Israeli Volleyball

Hadera, Israel. This past Thursday, March 18, the Israel Volleyball Association successfully hosted the finals of their national cup at the Anerbox Arena in Hadera, with the competition returning after the cancellation of the 2020 edition following the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Hapoel KFAR SABA and Maccabi TEL AVIV were the eventual winners of the women’s and men’s trophy, respectively, following an event which spread good vibes and positive energy among the few hundreds of people in attendance on site as well as those following from afar. 

The Israeli Minister of Culture and Sports, Mr Hili Tropper, was among the 400 spectators to attend the women’s final – all sporting a green badge to confirm they have received the vaccine against the novel coronavirus. The programme included an entertaining opening ceremony as well, with the children of the Hadera Municipal Conservatory delivering a live performance of the Israeli national anthem. 

Back to the court, Maccabi HAIFA and Hapoel KFAR SABA extended their rivalry in the women’s competition. In 2019, Maccabi had triumphed following a dramatic 3-2 victory, whereas a year before, Hapoel had stormed to a 3-0 victory. These two teams crossed their paths in the final of the Israeli national cup for the seventh straight year. Hapoel claimed back the title as they beat Maccabi 3-0 – just as they had done in 2018. 

Noah Erez, libero of Hapoel: “After a difficult semi-final against Hadera, we reached the final with the desire and motivation to play the best we can and take the trophy. We worked hard in training and eventually took the cup.”

Maccabi TEL AVIV celebrate their first success in the Israeli national cup in nine years 

In the men’s final, Maccabi TEL AVIV delivered a 3-1 victory over Hapoel KFAR SABA to claim the title for the first time in nine years.  

“It was a typical cup final match with the top two teams in the country fighting hard from start to end, and I am glad we won,” said Gal Galili, head coach of Maccabi TEL AVIV. “I very much enjoy working with this group of players. We have defined a set of goals and we will continue our journey from here.” 

“I want to take my hat off to Maccabi,” commented the head coach of Hapoel, Sagi Baram. “Both teams played extremely well but Maccabi stood out with their defence today. They managed to come back after losing the first set and to adjust their game. We did well too – but today we need to praise Maccabi and their performance.” 

The President of the Israel Volleyball Association, Asher Kaso, drew many positives from the event. “In what still remains a challenging year, we continue to work hard at all levels and I am happy that with the delivery of the cup finals we could celebrate some sort of a victory for us on the way back to our usual life and routine. To pay tribute to those who did never stop working for a moment this past year, we invited to the finals representatives of the medical personnel serving at the Hillel Yaffe Hospital here in Hadera. This hospital continues to provide professional, reliable and dedicated service to all who come through its gates,” Kaso said. 

“We managed to celebrate an important event for Israeli Volleyball such as the cup finals in a rather festive atmosphere. We now feel optimistic about a phased return to normalcy. Israeli Volleyball, despite all difficulties, continues to move forward and to lead by example. Moreover, we continue to promote gender equality – as we have an equal number of registered male and female players and the same prize money goes to men and women. We will continue to pursue this goal as the Israel Volleyball Association has done for many years already.”

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CEV – European Volleyball
IVA – Israeli Volleyball Association