Voluntary took the opening points of the Division A1 women's season with a 3:1 victory over Bucharest on Friday afternoon. The result leaves the hosts top of the table with three points from one match, while the visitors sit eighth with none. It was the kind of performance that confirms what the form books suggested before the whistle.
The home side had already shown they could string sets together. Three wins on the bounce before this fixture — including a 3:1 over Constanta last Sunday — meant they arrived with momentum. Bucharest had won five straight in April but those results are water under the bridge now. By then the roster may have shifted, and the table does not lie.
There were no surprises in the scoreline. Voluntary controlled the tempo from the first set and never let the visitors into a rhythm. The away side managed to take one set, but that was about as far as they got. The high line of their defence was picked apart in the crucial moments, and there is no value left at that level when you are fighting for every point.
We had called a home win with seventy per cent confidence before the match. The prediction has come true, and it was not a gamble. Voluntary have the depth and the structure to see this through. Bucharest, by contrast, looked like they were still finding their feet. They refused to go away, but they could not find a way through.
The gap in the table now sits at three points. One match played, one match played, and already the hierarchy is becoming clear. Voluntary are in control of the tie, and Bucharest have work to do. The season is young, but the opening statement has been made.
