Liechtenstein pair leaves Borg and Zarb heartbroken

Alison Borg and Gertrude Zarb in action yesterday. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

Alison Borg and Gertrude Zarb will return home empty-handed tonight after they lost the women’s beachvolley bronze medal play-off against Liechtenstein 2-1 at the Arena D’Coque yesterday.

Two years ago in Liechtenstein, the Maltese players went agonisingly close to finishing third in the tournament but lost a decisive match against Luxembourg 2-1.

Yesterday, Borg and Zarb had another opportunity to pick up their first medal in the Games but once again their hopes were dashed after going down to Liech-tenstein in another three-set thriller.

Things looked promising at first after a fine Borg-Zarb performance in the opening set.

They hit top gear in the closing stages and surged 17-14 ahead. With Lena Vogrin and Petra Walser-Schifferle unable to put themselves back in contention, the Maltese pair closed out the set 21-18 in 17 minutes.

However, Borg and Zarb lowered their guard in the second set. They looked struggling in attack against a more focused Liechtenstein and it was no surprise that the latter eased through to win the set 21-15 in 16 minutes.

A decider was needed to determine who would bag the prize for third place.

Walser-Schifferle and Vogrin were on a roll now and they surged five points clear, 10-5, to edge closer to the medal.

Zarb and Borg did manage to bridge the gap to 12-10 but Liechtenstein soon regained control to seal the set 15-11 and the match 2-1.

A the end of the match, coach Tibor Stranacek said that unforced errors had cost his girls dearly.

“It’s hard to accept, I know,” Stranacek said as he consoled his teary-eyed players.

“They were great in the first set but then started to give away points too easily and that proved to be the difference in the end.

“My players gave their all but such upsets happen mainly due to lack of experience. We have been working hard for the last six months but it’s crucial for Maltese players to be involved in more tournaments abroad to have their say in events of this calibre.”