We started the day with the last two pool matches of the tournament, first with Ireland up against a tough Icelandic team looking to prove themselves after their loss against San Marino the day before. Iceland redeemed themselves with a 3-0 win and secured themselves a spot in the second semi-final which was to take place later that day. Luxembourg bagged the final spot in the semi-finals with their win against Northern Ireland, finishing the pool stage undefeated.
The first semi-final of the day saw the home-favourites, Scotland, go up against San Marino, drawing a near-full hall at Oriam. Scotland started off the match strong with an ace from Marc Mclaughlin and the team remained in control for the rest of the set, winning the set 25-19 with another ace from David Mexson. San Marino took charge in the second set, building a consistent momentum to steal the set from Scotland 25-22 after the Scots struggled to get into a strong rhythm. The third set was another close one, filled with massive rallies and blocks from both sides, which saw Scotland come out on top at 25-23. In the fourth set, Scotland quickly built a strong rhythm against San Marino to bag the set win 25-17 and a ticket to the finals.
Semi-final number two, between Luxembourg and Iceland, saw a series of clean serves, blocks, and hits from both sides. However, Luxembourg quickly gained control of the set with a wide variety of plays and strong serves, winning the first set 25-18. Although Iceland tried to combat this with some powerful hits of their own, Luxembourg maintained their strong and creative plays in the second set to win it 25-15. Iceland put up a stronger fight in the third set, with their hitters finding their way through blocks and holding a strong block of their own. Ultimately, the more consistent Luxembourg team stole the win 25-21 to land themselves the second spot in the finals.
We’ve got one more day of matches today, seeing Ireland and Northern Ireland in the battle for 5th Place, San Marino and Iceland in a rematch for 3rd, and Scotland versus Luxembourg for the trophy! Catch this all live on our Youtube page for one more day of volleyball-filled action!