Al Rayyan down Al Arabi to set up finale vs Al Ahli

Defending champions Al Rayyan marched into the Amir Cup volleyball final defeating Al Arabi 2-0 in the of the best-of-three semi-final playoffs yesterday.At the Qatar Volleyball Association Indoor Hall, nine-time winners Rayyan won the second game of the playoff 3-2 (25-21, 23-25, 25-22, 25-27, 15-13) in a thrilling fashion to set up a final, which will be played on May 12, against Al Ahli.The four-time finalist and 1987-88 champions Al Ahli defeated Qatar Sports Club 2-0 in the playoffs to enter their first final in 22 years.“It was a difficult match as both the teams have quality players. We fought for every ball and that was the best part of the semi-finals. We’re very happy to be into another final and hope to win it too,” Al Rayyan coach Carlos Schwanke said.French star Earvin N’Gapeth, who plays for Modena Club in Italy, was the star of the victory with 33 points, with 26 off the attack game.“I’m very happy to win and be in the final. We played two matches against Al Arabi and both were very difficult. I’m delighted for me and the team. I hope we will win the final,” N’Gapeth said.In the first set, N’Gapeth and Dutch star Nimir Abdel-Aziz displayed power-packed smashes. But with Al Rayyan getting crucial support from Bilal Abunabot, Mubarak Dahi Waleed, Marcus and Bairama Faye, they were able to open a three-to-four-point gap.Arabi managed to recover twice, but they were not able to wipe out the deficit once they fell behind 14-17.Arabi won the tight second set 23-25 as both the teams failed to take lead of more than two points.Rayyan attacked with full resources and intensity in the beginning of the third set and won it 25-22.Arabi regrouped in the fourth set and went 5-1 clear. They converted it into a six-point advantage later (15-9), but attacking Rayyan equalised at 20-20 and were in a match-winning position. But Dutch star Abdel-Aziz came to Arabi’s rescue as he forced a touch out to set up the set point (26-25). Then Faye was blocked, leaving the match tied at 2-2.In the tie-break, Rayyan used different variations to go 5-5, and then 7-5 and 10-6 before eventually winning it easy.Marcus scored 20, while Bilal and Mubarak Dahi Waleed netted 12 each for the winners. For Arabi, Nimir Abdel-Aziz was the leading scorer with 27, Jorge scored 17, and Rebeiro and Bassam notched up 15 and 12 respectively.