Dutch volleyball men, with Robert Andringa selected from Essen, qualified for the Nations League quarter-finals.
The Nations League is an annual volleyball tournament in which sixteen countries participate. The tournament consists of two rounds and in the first round all countries play twelve matches. The top eight teams then advance to the final round; Knockout table. The first number in the first round plays against the number eight, the second number against the number seven, and so on.
Yesterday, the Netherlands, where Andringa started in the starting team, lost 3-0 to Italy. However, this is enough to advance to the last round. The Netherlands finish the first round in eighth place and thus play against the winner of the first round on July 20. As a result, another confrontation with Italy awaits.
After the first round, the 32-year-old Andringa became one of the best “diggers” of the tournament. This is the defensive player who dives toward the ball to prevent it from hitting the ground. Andringa – who’s played every game – has done it 72 times so far. This puts him in the top 5 “diggers” list.
The Dutch men have so far been stronger in the Nations League than Iran (3-0), Australia (3-0), Slovenia (3-0), Germany (3-1), Argentina (3-2) and China (3-0) while losing to Japan (1-3), the United States (0-3), France (0-3), Bulgaria (1-3), Poland (0-3) and Italy (0-3). This is the fourth time that the League of Nations has been held. The Netherlands is participating for the second time.
