Luczniczka Bydgoszcz is having a nighmare season in Poland’s PlusLiga. It currently sits in 14th place, just out of the relegation zone with a 6-19 record. Its squad has been hampered with injuries all throughout the season, but according to coach Jakub Bednaruk and team captain Wojciech Jurkiewicz, bad luck is not the only reason why the team is not winning, after the team dropped a 3-1 loss to Jastrzębski Węgiel:
“We play good volleyball, we fight. However, our endgame is a nightmare. We play well throughout most of the game, but when we have to separate boys from men, we become boys. We simulate these situations during out training, but in the match we always end up making bad decisions, be it on serving, be it on a combined sete play. Our failures at the end of sets can also be attributed to or lack of cold bloodiness. When we see the score hit “20”, we panic, and that is a big difference between good and exceptional players. We lack confidence. This is a mental problem.” – Team Head Coach Bednaruk.
“We have suffered a lot of defeats, especially in these kind of games, which will determine whether we will jump away from the relegation group, or whether we will continue to look at other teams from behind. We’re in a difficult situation for sure. The situation is hard, but not hopeless. The calendar is not in our side, we will play with difficult opponents, but we believe in ourselves at all times. We have to manage mentally, because if we lose our heads, it will be ugly.” – Team Captain Jurkiewicz
These words can certainly sound harsh, but it’s safe to assume both athlete and coach had the team’s best interests at heart. Bydgoszcz now has 4 games left in its season, all against teams that are well positioned in PlusLiga standings: 7th place Olsztyn, 8th place Cuprum, 9th place Radom, and 4th place Gdansk. It will do everything it can to escape relegation and be a member of PlusLiga’s 2018-19 season.
Were they really expecting anything different with that roster though?