Men finish off Wessex (for the 3rd time!)

Men's National League Division 1, 23rd February 2002

Warwick Riga 3 Wessex 1 (25-14, 23-25, 25-20, 25-23)

With the National League Division One programme entering the home straight, Riga kicked on in the race for second berth. The three-one victory over Wessex on Saturday at the St. Nicholas Park Leisure Centre, Warwick, may not have been the team’s most comfortable victory but with rivals Portsmouth falling by the wayside at Salford, Riga claimed their coveted second spot at a crucial time in the season. "If this was a horse race, I doubt there’d be a better time to hit the front," claimed a beaming captain Tom Young.	The ball gets past Danny & John
The return of defensive specialist Mark Fearn made an immediate impact on Riga’s fortunes in the first set. With the stability of his pass and acrobatic defence, the team were soon in command at 9 – 3. John Gilling and Tom Spijkers also caught the eye as Riga stormed home 25 – 14, the last six points courtesy of some devastating serving by Dutchman Spijkers.
Riga time-out	Flushed with success, Riga sat back on their laurels and allowed Wessex an early lead in the second set. The dangerous Danny Weemes was the main Wessex offensive option and the home side struggled to contain him. The visitors looked good for their three-point advantage and there seemed little that Riga could do to force parity. However when Colin Paterson achieved just that at 18 apiece, another set seemed destined for the Riga pocket. Despite being 23 – 20 behind, Wessex showed the grit and determination of a relegation threatened side to come back and snatch the set 25 – 23 when Riga fell apart.
Set three began as set one with Riga in command. Fine serving from Paterson had the home side 5 – 1 up and the four point cushion remained an Everest for Wessex throughout the set. As England International Weemes faded, so did the visitors’ hopes of victory. Closure duly arrived at 25 – 20 courtesy of a combined de Hoogh and Bottomley block on the hapless Weemes.
Wessex scramble	If sets one and three replicated each other, sets two and four followed suit. Wessex stole a three point lead as errors crept into the Riga play. However once Paterson negated that advantage the crowd were treated to a thrilling end game. As the rallies became more prolonged and action-packed, so a Riga three point lead came and went. Nip followed tuck until Wyles, Gilling and Paterson forged a 23 – 20 gap in Riga’s favour. Again Wessex, fighting for their Division One survival replied but at 24 – 23, Riga’s Spijkers applied the coup de grace to take the set out of Wessex’s grasp 25 – 23.
"It was certainly an exciting game for the spectators," said Young afterwards. "With the postponement of the Docklands game, we hadn’t played for a month and it showed. Wessex came here on a roll and played well. They’ll be disappointed especially with the weekend’s other results. The Salford win put Wessex back in the relegation spot. On the other hand it lifts us to second and that can’t be bad."	Wessex block
Riga's Dutch duo in action	Sunday sees the Women’s Division Three team make their final appearance of the season at the St. Nicholas Park Leisure Centre, Warwick (2pm) when they entertain top-of-the-table Lynx. A three-one reverse earlier in the season indicates the size of the task facing the Riga girls but coach Sarah Halling is optimistic of an upset. "If we can play at the level I know we can, then Lynx are in for a match. But achieving consistency has been our problem this season, so Saturday could be a big high or a big low."