Imagine it is the hottest phase of a championship – and a play-off match cannot take place because the venue is full. That’s what happened on Sunday in Amstetten. The reigning men’s volleyball champion Hypo Tirol traveled to Amstetten for the first of a maximum of three quarter-final duels and left again after the waiting period specified in the regulations. Without having hit a single ball.
The Lower Austrians wanted to celebrate a party, but the result was an embarrassing farce that damaged the entire sport and the league (AVL). The game was postponed to 5 p.m. on Sunday because of a youth tournament (U15 national championships) on the same day, which dragged on.
Since the hall was not ready for play on time, the referees canceled the match. Amstetten is now threatened with criminal verification. A 3-0 win for Tyrol at the green table would be anything but a surprise. A verdict is expected on Tuesday.
Tyrol head coach Stefan Chrtiansky was angry about the incident: “It’s crazy, something like that is absolutely unprofessional. We arrived and can now go home without having accomplished anything.”
Amstetten naturally sees the matter in a differentiated way: “We had twelve teams from Lower Austria who fought for their titles in our hall. The tournament was designed in such a way that the girls and boys stayed for the match afterwards and received their medals during the set breaks. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen anymore,” explains VCA sports director Michael Henschke.
The guests left Amstetten after the official waiting time of 45 minutes for a delayed start to the game. “A little later we would have been ready for the match, but unfortunately without Tyrol. They let down over 100 young people who wanted to see the best team in Austria,” reported Henschke.
Those responsible in Amstetten consciously decided not to cancel the tournament: “Many parents came along, the mood in the hall was great and afterwards everyone patted us on the back because we had decided to have the offspring,” said Henschke finally.
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