Volleyball: Croydon back into title race

CROYDON'S men's team have catapulted themselves back up the league and into the title race with a solid 3-0 win (31-29, 25-21, 25-19) over East London side Fireball.

The marathon first set was a very tense affair as the lead changed hands many times until Croydon started to impose themselves on the game.

Fireball managed to save five set points until the visitors took the deciding point.

Outside hitter Martin Hromadko was in imperious form, consistently smashing powerfully inside their opponents' three-metre line and proved to be the difference.

Having been somewhat erratic in the first set, Croydon went down 6-1 in the second but a time-out by head coach Balsamo regrouped the side and Richard Neal produced a run of nine serves to regain the lead. From then on, they never looked back.

Jermaine Miles, fresh from his England Junior exploits in Denmark, played his best game yet, switching to the opposite position. Several big blocks and winning hits were impressive from the 15-year-old.

Croydon hope to carry their winning form into upcoming key games, which will be played at their new home venue at Croydon Sports Club.