In a breathtaking comeback, Border Guard defended their national men's volleyball championship title.

On the evening of October 15th, in the men's final of the National Volleyball Championship, Border Guard defeated The Cong Tan Cang to claim the title.

Border Guard team wins national championship for the second consecutive year - Photo: VFV

What's interesting about this year's final is that two military volleyball teams are facing each other. This is the first time in history that this has happened.

Historically, The Cong Tan Cang has the edge with 4 championships and 7 runner-up finishes. However, in recent years, they have struggled to regain their position. Meanwhile, Border Guard is rising strongly with a well-rounded team of athletes who have progressed through youth tournaments and possess considerable competitive experience.

They were also the reigning champions of the tournament, so it's understandable why they were considered the favorites. However, it was The Cong Tan Cang that delivered many surprises in the first half of the match.

Indonesian hitter Rivan Nurmulki continued to shoulder the responsibility of scoring points for The Cong. The excellent performance of this opposite hitter also helped his teammates, such as Trung Thanh and Xuan Sinh, play more smoothly.

As a result, they won the first set 25-21. In the second set, Coach Tran Dinh Tien of the Border Guard team made a surprising decision by substituting many key players. This further plunged his team into crisis, as they were at times trailing by as much as 4 points.

But then the key players returned and played much better. In particular, setter Dinh Van Duy, having shed his psychological burden, made some tricky plays that helped Bien Phong equalize.

The two teams engaged in a long, back-and-forth battle. Then, Border Guard won a nail-biting 31-29 set. In the third set, they capitalized on their momentum to win 25-20.

The championship was getting closer for Border Guard as they continued to build a lead in set 4. Coach Tran Dinh Tien's team even came close to championship point, leading 24-23. But then The Cong fought bravely, successfully saving the point to win 26-24.

This forced the final match into a fifth set, leading to another nail-biting turn of events. The Cong team took the lead again, 3-1, 7-5. But then, experience and class prevailed, and Bien Phong staged a comeback to win 15-12 and claim the championship.

They are the only team to have won all their matches in this year's National Volleyball Championship, and have also completed the domestic trinity, having previously won the Hoa Lu Cup and the Hung Vuong Cup. Meanwhile, The Cong officially entered its ninth consecutive year without a national championship title.

DUC KHUE

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/nguoc-dong-nghet-tho-bien-phong-bao-ve-chuc-vo-dich-bong-chuyen-nam-quoc-gia-20251015224608145.htm