In their second match of the #EuroVolleyU22M Pool D qualifier, the Latvian men’s national team suffered a decisive 0-3 defeat (18-25, 16-25, 16-25) at the hands of Israel. The match took place on Friday at the Daugavpils Olympic Centre, with the visitors from Israel proving too strong for the host team.
Match Breakdown
Latvia started the first set promisingly, with Ņikita Dimitrijevs contributing two blocks to establish an early 3:0 lead. However, Israel quickly found their rhythm, taking control and extending their lead to 9:6 and then 21:16, highlighted by an ace from Mark Rura. The Israelis comfortably secured the final points to win the set 25-18.
The second set saw Israel maintain their dominance. They pulled ahead early, leading 11:6, with Yuval Chansky delivering effective serves. Israel continued to build their advantage, reaching a ten-point lead. Despite a hit from Armands Rokjāns reducing the deficit slightly, Latvia was unable to mount a serious challenge, losing the set 25-16.
The third set followed a similar pattern, with Latvia trailing 3:7 early on, as Shay Mayo Liberman made a crucial block for Israel. Latvia briefly rallied, leveling the score at 8:8 by capitalizing on an Israeli error. However, Israel responded with a four-point run. Although a block from Dimitrijevs brought Latvia closer at 11:13, another block, this time by Lior Vili Kopilevich, restored a significant eight-point cushion for Israel. The visitors closed out the set and the match with a final score of 25-16.
For Latvia, top scorers were Armands Rokjāns with eight points, followed by Ņikita Dimitrijevs with seven points (including four blocks), and Kristers Landzāns with six. Israel`s offense was spearheaded by Mark Rura, who scored an impressive 16 points, and Shay Mayo Liberman, who added 13 points.
Player and Coach Reactions
Kristers Landzāns, Latvian player: “I think we lacked aggressiveness from the start. The Israelis started clearly stronger, more aggressively, and more emotionally. That’s exactly what we were missing. We wanted to win and did everything we could, but I don’t know… A lot of our players also play Beach Volleyball and couldn’t help out this time, so our team is quite young.”
Mārcis Obrumans, head coach of the Latvian team: “This time more things didn’t work than did. It was Israel’s strength and our inability. It’s hard to say in which game elements we were able to counter them. Israel didn’t particularly surprise us – they just made fewer mistakes and served aggressively. As a result, we often played against a well-structured and tall double block. This led to many errors in our attacks, while the Israelis played very confidently.”
Noam Katz, head coach of Israel: “The team was well prepared. We studied how Latvia plays – they deserve a lot of credit for taking part in last year’s European Championship. We believe we made the right steps to win the match. Yesterday we lost to Poland, but it was a good match. Poland is a strong team – though they won, we knew we played well.”
Regarding qualification hopes, Katz added: “Since we already suffered a loss, there is a chance we can still qualify as one of the best second-place teams. That will depend on tomorrow’s match against Croatia. We need to be just as prepared as today and do our job.”
Sharing his impressions of the host country, Katz said: “Latvia is a great country. I was here back in 1995 as a young player training during a tournament in Riga. It seems the country has developed a lot. I really like the people here – they are very helpful and pleasant.”
Group Update
In the other match of the day in Pool D, Poland defeated Croatia with a dominant 3-0 score (25-10, 25-21, 25-17).
The group standings after Day 2 are as follows:
- Poland: 2 wins, 5 points
- Israel: 1 win, 4 points
- Latvia: 1 win, 3 points
- Croatia: 0 wins, 0 points
Latvia’s head coach, Mārcis Obrumans, commented on the challenging group situation: “We have played decently against Poland’s team in this age group before. Now they are the leaders of the qualification group, and we have no more room for error. I hope today’s loss will be a big lesson. On Saturday, we must come with a different energy and play against Poland.”
#EuroVolleyU22M Finals
The final stage of the #EuroVolleyU22M is scheduled for next year. It will feature the five group winners from the qualification rounds, the two best second-placed teams, and the host nation. The tournament is open to players born on or after January 1, 2005. The finals will be held in Albufeira, Portugal, from June 29 to July 4, 2026.
Jasper Thornfield 
Finley Blackwood