|
Post by guest2 on Jul 27, 2016 17:20:39 GMT -5
Pretty good clip of Stoklos setting right now. I remember watching Stoklos in that movie Sideout and thought the guy was a complete @$$%*!*. He was quite brash out on the court when I watched him. I hear he was/is one of the nicest guys off the court. I loved watching him play. Im the biggest Stoklos fan there is, but when he played he could be an a#####e. I remember a Volleyball Magazine around the end of Stokie's career when Ceman was detailing the rivalries on tour. He listed a few then said Stoklos and everyone. I think there will also be some ex partners who may have felt they were yelled at a little too often
|
|
|
Post by butteryhands on Jul 27, 2016 21:36:36 GMT -5
I really don't think Phil sets that deep of a ball. Now Carambula....
|
|
|
Post by guest2 on Jul 28, 2016 5:44:19 GMT -5
FIVB rules continue to be absolute garbage.
Claes/Hughes won two matches in two games each. They beat the 1 and 2 seeds on their net Their loss, in three games, was so close that Claes/Hughes actually scored more points.
They came oout of pool second.
Ludwig/Walkenhorst took a two game loss then won their other two matches in two.
Ludwig/Walkenhorst also lost to Claes/Hughes.
The only place L/W have an advantage is they beat the 3rd seeded team in pool very badly.
There is no system that isnt stupid in which Claes/Hughes dont come off first.
Of course under FIVB rules they come off second. Now if they get a bad draw, they end up 17th and their ascent to a main draw team is significantly delayed, even though they beat the no. 1 seed in the tournament and whipped the second seed on their net.
|
|
|
Post by JB Southpaw on Jul 28, 2016 6:53:40 GMT -5
I watched the first 10 points of Mayer/Avatar vs. Brazil. It looked windy as F-ck there. both teams had trouble passing.
Crabbs beat Hyden/Bourne in 2.
Theo and Allen also lost their 1st match in 2.
|
|
|
Post by JB Southpaw on Jul 28, 2016 7:20:58 GMT -5
FIVB rules continue to be absolute garbage. Claes/Hughes won two matches in two games each. They beat the 1 and 2 seeds on their net Their loss, in three games, was so close that Claes/Hughes actually scored more points. They came oout of pool second. Ludwig/Walkenhorst took a two game loss then won their other two matches in two. Ludwig/Walkenhorst also lost to Claes/Hughes. The only place L/W have an advantage is they beat the 3rd seeded team in pool very badly. There is no system that isnt stupid in which Claes/Hughes dont come off first. Of course under FIVB rules they come off second. Now if they get a bad draw, they end up 17th and their ascent to a main draw team is significantly delayed, even though they beat the no. 1 seed in the tournament and whipped the second seed on their net. No system is perfect, but I seriously hate Non Head to head decisions in a 2 way tie. it's inconceivable in my head. At least do it for 1st place in the pool, for any other ties go to points.
|
|
|
Post by guest2 on Jul 28, 2016 7:31:08 GMT -5
Claes/Hughes do look to have a pretty manageable draw. Not a walk by any means but if they play well a 7th or better looks like a good possibility.
I really hate that these two are going back for another year of school. If they used the late and early FIVB events over the next 8 months to get their points and qualifications in order they could be a real force on the tour next year.
|
|
|
Post by butteryhands on Jul 28, 2016 8:38:23 GMT -5
Claes/Hughes do look to have a pretty manageable draw. Not a walk by any means but if they play well a 7th or better looks like a good possibility. I really hate that these two are going back for another year of school. If they used the late and early FIVB events over the next 8 months to get their points and qualifications in order they could be a real force on the tour next year. Going back to school is the smart move. There isn't much money to be made playing beach volleyball.
|
|
|
Post by swift on Jul 28, 2016 8:57:08 GMT -5
Are the Crabb brothers good enough to take it to the next level with each other or do you think a split would be wise? That's a good question. I'd say right now, the sum is greater than the parts. Trevor is a below average sized blocker. I don't think he is as physically dynamic as Tri, he gets blocked a bit much for me. His setting has really improved over the last 2 years of being on tour. Taylor is undersized as the player who will have to side out, but when you look at Nick & Bruno you can't brush players like this aside. I think he is very dynamic athletically, both offensively and on Defense. He may be the 2nd best defensive player behind Nick in the US. (not the best non-blocker, as there are a few who side out better right now) I think Taylor will get more comfortable hitting around the monster FIVB blocks the more he plays. I think Taylor has the higher ceiling if Trevor is just a blocker. Not sure Trevor can transition, I'd like to see him try. The Crabb brothers are really fun to watch. Probably my favorite US team to watch at the moment. Taylor's defence is incredible and maybe even better than Nick's. (you have to consider that it's a lot easier to play defense behind Phil) Also I believe he can be just as good sideout-wise. He seems to play pretty smart but he's got the hops and the armswing too. As for Trevor: I gotta give him credit. Lately he's been playing very well. I've seen two of their matches in Klagenfurt and his side out percentage had to be almost a 100%. However he's a bit undersized for a top blocker and it seems that nowadays you need that size at the net in order to be one of the top teams. You can hardly serve some of these super tall players if you don't have a super tall blocker on your team. However there are still a few very successful teams out there without a monster-blocker (like the Latvians) so I'd say the Crabbs can be successful too. At the moment they look stronger than Jake & Casey to me.
|
|
|
Post by guest2 on Jul 28, 2016 9:30:45 GMT -5
Taylor has really impressed me this year, in particular how fearless he is against big blocks. One thing I have always hated about Nick's game is it feels like he gets scared to swing at times. The matches I have seen Taylor play that hasn't been the case. I think his swing is also better than Nick's.
I think you can get by with two smallish blockers on a team much more easily than you can with one. With split blocking, legs stay fresh, hitters see different looks, you can really bomb jump serves etc. Success is definitely possible with someone like Trevor or Tri as the sole blocker, but its much harder. Other than the Latvians probably the smallest blocker on a top team right now is Jake Gibb, and Jake as a blocker is in another league than players like Tri and Trevor. (Pedro counts too I guess)
I would love to see Ryan/Taylor and Trevor/Tri. If Phil continues on tour next year I would also love to see him pick up either Taylor or Tri.
|
|
|
Post by JB Southpaw on Jul 28, 2016 10:02:12 GMT -5
Taylor has really impressed me this year, in particular how fearless he is against big blocks. One thing I have always hated about Nick's game is it feels like he gets scared to swing at times. The matches I have seen Taylor play that hasn't been the case. I think his swing is also better than Nick's. I think you can get by with two smallish blockers on a team much more easily than you can with one. With split blocking, legs stay fresh, hitters see different looks, you can really bomb jump serves etc. Success is definitely possible with someone like Trevor or Tri as the sole blocker, but its much harder. Other than the Latvians probably the smallest blocker on a top team right now is Jake Gibb, and Jake as a blocker is in another league than players like Tri and Trevor. (Pedro counts too I guess) I would love to see Ryan/Taylor and Trevor/Tri. If Phil continues on tour next year I would also love to see him pick up either Taylor or Tri. I don't think Ryan sets well enough for Taylor, or Taylor for that matter. Trevor and Taylor are probably better than Taylor and Ryan. I like Taylor and Tri. I think Ryan needs to play with someone bigger, easier to set even if it's giving up some defensive athletic-ness. Trevor and Ryan would work better for me.
|
|
|
Post by haze on Jul 28, 2016 10:23:13 GMT -5
So what was the tie-breaker that allowed Claes/Hughes to finish 2nd? I'm going to assume it's the points ratio, as that's the only visible statistical category that Claes/Hughes didn't win, which is very stupid considering the point differential of the 2 teams was exactly the same. The ONLY reason why they allowed more points is because they lost in 3 and not 2 sets. Makes no sense.
I would ultimately love to see Taylor and Tri. I think the Crabbs will stick together though and that's ok by me. Just MHO but Taylor is the best defender in the US at the moment and pushing World Class if he isn't already there. The one part of his game he still really needs to improve on is defense transitioning to offense but that might be asking a lot considering how many balls he digs and the manner he digs them. He can still get better on siding out but IMHO he's good enough right now.
I think one of the main reasons Phil switched back to Lucena is their friendship, and he wanted to wind his career down playing with him and they weren't going to be as worried about results after Rio. I don't think there's any way those 2 split. Their friendship is too strong and dominates volleyball and they I think they would sacrifice results for that.
|
|
|
Post by rtovfresh on Jul 28, 2016 10:40:49 GMT -5
So what was the tie-breaker that allowed Claes/Hughes to finish 2nd? I'm going to assume it's the points ratio, as that's the only visible statistical category that Claes/Hughes didn't win, which is very stupid considering the point differential of the 2 teams was exactly the same. The ONLY reason why they allowed more points is because they lost in 3 and not 2 sets. Makes no sense. I would ultimately love to see Taylor and Tri. I think the Crabbs will stick together though and that's ok by me. Just MHO but Taylor is the best defender in the US at the moment and pushing World Class if he isn't already there. The one part of his game he still really needs to improve on is defense transitioning to offense but that might be asking a lot considering how many balls he digs and the manner he digs them. He can still get better on siding out but IMHO he's good enough right now. I think one of the main reasons Phil switched back to Lucena is their friendship, and he wanted to wind his career down playing with him and they weren't going to be as worried about results after Rio. I don't think there's any way those 2 split. Their friendship is too strong and dominates volleyball and they I think they would sacrifice results for that. The FIVB changed that rule going into this year, I remember Casey Patterson writing about it in DIG magazine. So the rule use to be 2 way tie, it goes head-to-head which is the way it should be IMO, now it is your overall point ratio. For a 3-way tie, it is also point ratio but pretty sure it is just between the 3 teams, it doesn't count your point ratio against the 4th non-tied team. So yes as others pointed out kind of stupid tie breaking procedure, not sure how the players don't speak up there and get that changed. So the women are done, all 17th's or lower, ouch! Come on men, represent the USA before the Olympics!
|
|
|
Post by JB Southpaw on Jul 28, 2016 10:43:41 GMT -5
So what was the tie-breaker that allowed Claes/Hughes to finish 2nd? I'm going to assume it's the points ratio, as that's the only visible statistical category that Claes/Hughes didn't win, which is very stupid considering the point differential of the 2 teams was exactly the same. The ONLY reason why they allowed more points is because they lost in 3 and not 2 sets. Makes no sense. I would ultimately love to see Taylor and Tri. I think the Crabbs will stick together though and that's ok by me. Just MHO but Taylor is the best defender in the US at the moment and pushing World Class if he isn't already there. The one part of his game he still really needs to improve on is defense transitioning to offense but that might be asking a lot considering how many balls he digs and the manner he digs them. He can still get better on siding out but IMHO he's good enough right now. I think one of the main reasons Phil switched back to Lucena is their friendship, and he wanted to wind his career down playing with him and they weren't going to be as worried about results after Rio. I don't think there's any way those 2 split. Their friendship is too strong and dominates volleyball and they I think they would sacrifice results for that. Yes, ties are broken by Points now. Nick and Bruno are in a class by themselves IMO, in terms of digging the Hard driven ball. Taylor isn't there yet. He can chase as good as anyone. Your are correct about his transition offense. I don't think it had anything to do with their friendship. It was a life decision, he was miserable with Sean & Nick was a known comodity . It isn't always easy playing with a good friend / family. Just like playing co-ed with your significant other. Little snipping and arguments start, just because. Now you play with this person, and you don't want to go hang with them after a bad tournament or practice.
|
|
|
Post by socalsurf on Jul 28, 2016 11:25:39 GMT -5
Lots of great interviews coming from Claes/Hughes in Klagenfurt. They're goofy but also very well spoken and I love that you can tell how genuinely enthusiastic and excited they are to be playing in these tournaments, soaking it all in.
Not often do you get to watch the birth of a truly special partnership play out on the beach, but we (and the rest of the world) are getting that now with Sara and Kelly. The next 10-15 years definitely look promising
|
|
|
Post by guest2 on Jul 28, 2016 11:53:13 GMT -5
So what was the tie-breaker that allowed Claes/Hughes to finish 2nd? I'm going to assume it's the points ratio, as that's the only visible statistical category that Claes/Hughes didn't win, which is very stupid considering the point differential of the 2 teams was exactly the same. The ONLY reason why they allowed more points is because they lost in 3 and not 2 sets. Makes no sense. I would ultimately love to see Taylor and Tri. I think the Crabbs will stick together though and that's ok by me. Just MHO but Taylor is the best defender in the US at the moment and pushing World Class if he isn't already there. The one part of his game he still really needs to improve on is defense transitioning to offense but that might be asking a lot considering how many balls he digs and the manner he digs them. He can still get better on siding out but IMHO he's good enough right now. I think one of the main reasons Phil switched back to Lucena is their friendship, and he wanted to wind his career down playing with him and they weren't going to be as worried about results after Rio. I don't think there's any way those 2 split. Their friendship is too strong and dominates volleyball and they I think they would sacrifice results for that. Yes, ties are broken by Points now. Nick and Bruno are in a class by themselves IMO, in terms of digging the Hard driven ball. Taylor isn't there yet. He can chase as good as anyone. Your are correct about his transition offense. I don't think it had anything to do with their friendship. It was a life decision, he was miserable with Sean & Nick was a known comodity . It isn't always easy playing with a good friend / family. Just like playing co-ed with your significant other. Little snipping and arguments start, just because. Now you play with this person, and you don't want to go hang with them after a bad tournament or practice. I agree its very early to put Taylor in a class with Nick who is one of the best defenders in the world now. Playing co-ed with someone who can punish your bad manners by witholding is never a good idea.
|
|