Goodchild Delights In Northumbria Win Double

Team Northumbria volleyball head coach Dave Goodchild was delighted with a perfect weekend’s work after his men bagged back-to-back Super 8s wins.

Sport Central witnessed straight sets victories against London Malory and Team Essex.

And Goodchild praised new-look TN after revealing his players are gelling as a unit on and off the court.

“I’m really pleased with the players’ mindset right now,” he said. “The way they interact during the video sessions and team meetings and the way they work together in practice and during matches is great to see.

“I’ve enjoyed watching them develop as a team during the last 48 hours. They are improving every day and deserved to start the new season with two wins.”

TN have recruited a slew of new faces as they bid to challenge for English volleyball’s top honours this season.

And if victory against Team Essex was expected then Malory were always expected to pose a stiffer test.

“I was happy with the performance against them,” added Goodchild. “We had a meeting before the game about what we expected from each other and what we want out of the weekend.

“There were some specifics that came out of that which we really hit on in game one.”

A dominant performance against the Londoners saw TN take the offensive from the start, winning the first two sets by a comfortable margin of 10 points (25-15 apiece).

The hosts continually capitalised on Malory’s mistakes and never allowed the visitors to find their rhythm.

“From our point of view, I thought the offence flowed really, really well,”added Goodchild. “The use of the backcourt, particularly the pipe ball with Dan Starkey, was flowing.

“As a serve reception unit, we started out well and overall as a team performance, I’m really pleased. It was a comfortable 3-0 victory against a good team.

“From a hitting perspective we did well. We passed well and we served tough. 

“As a coach, I’ve got to reflect on both games and see what we can add moving forward. Each game and each day by we just want to get better.”

Natalie Martin