The representative of Khanh Hoa's volleyball –Sanest Khanh Hoa–claimed the 2019 Hung Vuong Cup, which ended recently, after failed to protect the title in the 2018 season. This is their third Hung Vuong Cup championship.
The representative of Khanh Hoa’s volleyball –Sanest Khanh Hoa–claimed the 2019 Hung Vuong Cup, which ended recently, after failed to protect the title in the 2018 season. This is their third Hung Vuong Cup championship.
Trang An Ninh Binh has been the record holder of five Hung Vuong Cup titles in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, and 2018. Trang An Ninh Binh is also the team which has had the most number of appearances in this tournament with 13 out of the total of 14 editions of Hung Vuong Cup. This team has always been a strong favorite to win the title. Whereas, Sanest Khanh Hoa had to wait until 2016 to secure their first Hung Vuong Cup championship. Khanh Hoa’s team continued to perform excellently in the 2017 season and successfully defended the title. Last year’s season, Sanest Khanh Hoa started to rejuvenate the team and had a hard time harmonizing the play of the senior players and the young ones. The team had a poor performance and their journey at Hung Vuong Cup 2018 ended with a disappointing elimination in the group stage.
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Sanest Khanh Hoa started the 2019 season well, and their unbeaten run in the group stage helped them to enter the finals as Group B winner. The team overcame Binh Duong Building Materials with the result of 3-1 in the semi-final match to face Trang An Ninh Binh in the final. Trang An Ninh Binh also had an impressive form in the 2019 Hung Vuong Cup with a streak of five wins. The attacking lines of the two finalists were hailed as the current best ones in the domestic volleyball tournaments. Trang An Ninh Binh had many good players in their line-up, such as outside-hitters Nguyen Thanh Tung and Vu Quang Khoi, middle blocker Ngoc Hoang and Van Kha, setter Giang Van Duc, libero Nguyen Xuan Thanh, and Thailand hitter Kitsada who became naturalized Vietnamese player in 2016 with the name Nguyen Van Da. Their rival, Sanest Khanh Hoa, also had quality athletes, for example the national team’s athlete Tu Thanh Thuan who was said to be the number 1 outside setter of Vietnam's volleyball at the present time, libero Huynh Trung Truc (national team's member), outstanding young players Trien Chieu, Dinh Nhu, Van Tien, and Quang Doan.
The final competition between the two strong teams was awaited by many supporters. Sanest Khanh Hoa took the first two sets with the scores of 30-28 and 25-23. The team of Coach Thai Quang Lai continued to play well and won the third set 25-18, claiming the 2019 Hung Vuong Cup.
This victory was also the third consecutive win of Sanest Khanh Hoa against Trang An Ninh Binh in a final match since the end of the 2018 season. The two sides met in the finals of the National Sports Festival, Dam Ca Mau, and Hung Vuong Cup. These results were significantly thanks to the tactics of Coach Thai Quang Lai who was appointed to manage the team in the 2018 season.
An Nhien
Translated by H.N
