Mahindra Australian Volleyball Super League Round 2 Wrap
After two rounds of the Mahindra Australian Super League, just two teams remain undefeated in a competition which is shaping up as one in which finals spots will be hard to come by.
Perth’s men’s team have continued their dominant form from 2023 to sit on top of the ladder while Melbourne’s women’s team have dropped just three sets from the opening fortnight of competition.
Melbourne Vipers v Canberra Heat
State Volleyball Centre, Dandenong VIC
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Women: Vipers d Heat 4:1 (18-12, 18-11, 18-12, 18-14, 14-18)
Melbourne are setting the pace at the top of the Women’s Super League table after becoming the only team to remain undefeated after two rounds.
The Vipers were on track for maximum points against Canberra, up four sets and with a 23-point advantage going into the final set, however the Heat were able to claim the final set 18-14 to deny Melbourne an additional three competition points.
Despite this, the Vipers have already moved to a three-point lead on top of the ladder, however they face a stern test next week against the defending champion Perth Steel at Melbourne Sports Centres.
Men: Vipers* d Heat 4:1 (18-14, 18-8, 17-18, 18-10, 18-11)
Melbourne Vipers nearly took all the points against Canberra in a dominant 4:1 victory in Dandenong.
After going ahead 2:0 on the back of a 10-point second set win, the home side had to contend with a Heat fightback in the third which went the distance and went the way of the visitors.
However Melbourne bounced back in the fourth and fifth sets scoring 36 points to 21 to claim nine competition points and join Perth at the top of the table.
NSW Phoenix v Perth Steel
Netball Central, Sydney Olympic Park
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Women: Steel d Phoenix* 3:2 (12-18, 18-14, 18-12, 17-18, 18-13)
The defending champion Perth Steel have leapt int to the top four with a stoic win on the road against NSW Phoenix in Sydney.
Middle blocker Tessa Browne said that after going down by six in the first set, the Steel remained positive to get the match back on track and take the win in the fifth.
“We just knew we can do it,” she said. “We know how good we can be and we just said that to each other and obviously we came out playing much better quality volleyball in the second set and onwards; we just trusted each other really.”
Browne said that despite the match evening up 2:2 after the fourth, their experience came to the fore and they worked to their strategy to come out on top.
“Tessa Brown: “We were a bit shaky throughout but we just stuck to our plan which was to be disciplined in our defensive positions and rely on our attack.”
Despite suffering back-to-back losses, Phoenix’s ability to stay close and gain two bonus points from their opening two matches has them just one point away from equal second place on the table where the Steel sit alongside Adelaide.
Men: Steel d Phoenix 4:1 (16-18, 18-14, 18-17, 18-15, 18-12)
Perth Steel’s men’s side remain undefeated in the Super League era, recording their ninth straight win with a solid display in Sydney.
NSW came into the match confident on the back of a 5:0 whitewash over Canberra in round one and were first on the board by taking the first set.
However the visitors were able to even up the match and when they took the 35th point of the third to edge in front, they were never headed en route to a 4:1 win.
“We’ve been working hard, it was a tough fight last week against Adelaide but we came out, we played better today which was really good,” said setter Ryan Slater.
“All the guys presented really hard, everyone wanted the ball which makes my job just so easy so it was an easy game to set to be honest.”
Perth now sit on top of the competition ladder while the Phoenix are in third ahead of round three.
Queensland Pirates v Adelaide Storm
Iona College, Brisbane QLD
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Women: Pirates d Storm* 3:2 (18-16, 11-18, 18-16, 12-18, 18-13)
Queensland Pirates have lifted themselves from the bottom of the ladder with a 3:2 win over 2023 runners-up Adelaide in Brisbane.
The match was evenly-poised throughout, however the home side was able to gain the upper hand in the fifth and final set to claim the win, however the Storm were able to score a bonus point which has them sitting second on the ladder.
Men: Storm d Pirates* 3:2 (18-14, 13-18, 11-18, 18-11, 18-12)
Adelaide Storm have moved into the top four on the men’s ladder following a come-from-behind victory against Queensland.
The Pirates fought back from a set down to even up the match and then take the lead after the third.
However Adelaide were a dominant force over the next 25 minutes, winning the fourth and fifth sets by seven and eight points respectively to jump to second place on the ladder.
The Pirates earned five competition points out of the match to be tied Adelaide on the ladder, but sit outside the top four based on points quotient.
| WOMEN’S TABLE AFTER ROUND 2 | ||||||
| Team | P | W | L | Sets | Bonus | Points |
| Melbourne Vipers | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7-3 | 0 | 14 |
| Adelaide Storm | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5-5 | 1 | 11 |
| Perth Steel | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5-5 | 1 | 11 |
| Queensland Pirates | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5-5 | 0 | 10 |
| NSW Phoenix | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4-6 | 2 | 10 |
| Canberra Heat | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4-6 | 0 | 8 |
| MEN’S TABLE AFTER ROUND 2 | ||||||
| Team | P | W | L | Sets | Bonus | Points |
| Perth Steel | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7-3 | 0 | 14 |
| Melbourne Vipers | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6-4 | 2 | 14 |
| NSW Phoenix | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6-4 | 1 | 13 |
| Adelaide Storm | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5-5 | 1 | 11 |
| Queensland Pirates | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5-5 | 1 | 11 |
| Canberra Heat | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1-9 | 0 | 0 |
