Cyprus and Scotland advanced to the final round of the Junior Girls European Championships (Small Countries Division), which will be played in Cyprus later on this year, after taking the first two spots in the qualifying Group B played in Malta last weekend.

Cyprus topped the group with three wins out of three matches, taking maximum points in the process.

After defeating Scotland 3-1 in the first match, which lasted close to two hours, they found the going easier against the other two opponents, winning 3-0 in both matches.

The Cypriot girls were clearly the best team of the tournament, with MVP Nikoletta Stylianou and Eleana Petrou obtaining an average of 12 points per match.

Scotland’s performance against the same Cyprus was a commendable one, with the former showing considerable technical and tactical improvement. After stretching Cyprus in their opening match, they then beat Malta and Northern Ireland with a similar 3-0 score, thus garnering second place and qualifying for the final round. Sophie Hunter, whose 32 points included nine aces, and Claire Ramage, with 34 points throughout the tournament, led their team mates through the three matches, with Mhairi Agnew and Becky Arthur adding valuable points.

Northern Ireland’s star was their captain Alice Harkness, not only through the 28 points she obtained throughout the weekend, but also through the sheer determination she showed all the time she was on the court.

She inspired her team mates to keep pushing until the very end of each set.

Malta’s team was the youngest of the four, with only a handful of players out of the 12 taking part actually having some kind of international experience. This showed during those moments when the going got tougher and when experience pays more than skill.

The local girls played a good match in their first outing against Northern Ireland, and managed to keep themselves in the match during all the sets, winning the third one with a convincing 25-15 score.

But they found the going very tough against Scotland and Cyprus, with the Maltese girls not managing to play consistently at their very best. Sarah Spiteri shone in the first match, with 17 points including three blocks and three aces, while captain Denise Grech was more consistent throughout the weekend, winning a number of points for Malta.

In a short presentation and farewell ceremony at the end of the tournament, the Malta Volleyball Association’s president, Branco Vlahovic, together with CEV supervisor Nihat Ermihan, handed out a memento to the referees for this tournament. These were Ilaria Vagni (Italy); Alexander Brandstaetter (Austria); Andreas Constantinides (Cyprus); John Swan (Scotland) and Marvic Micallef (Malta).

Vlahovic, on behalf of the M.V.A., also handed out the following individual awards:

Best Setter: Cyprus No. 14 Leonidou Ioanna;

Best Receiver: Cyprus No. 3 Constantinou Stella;

Best Blocker: Cyprus No. 4 Stylianou Nikoletta;

Best Server: Scotland No. 9 Hunter Sophie;

Best Spiker: Scotland No. 5 Ramage Claire;

Most Valuable Player: Cyprus No. 4 Stylianou Nikoletta

Final Results: Cyprus – Scotland 3-1; Malta – Northern Ireland 1-3; Cyprus – Northern Ireland 3-0; Scotland – Malta 3-0; Northern Ireland – Scotland 0-3; Malta – Cyprus 0-3

Final Standings: Cyprus 9pts, Scotland 6pts, Northern Ireland 3 pts; Malta 0 pts.