The Malta Volleyball Association (MVA) is finally seeing its work come to fruition with the addition of six new clubs who registered for the new season.

Phoenix Volley, TGIF, Birkirkara, Mellieha Bullets, Sliema and Defenders are all new teams who will be participating in 2009/10 national competitions.

Most of these clubs were formed during last season which was packed with activities organised mainly by the association.

One of these activities was the Social League, set up specifically to introduce newcomers to the game and re-integrate seasoned players who had been inactive for a while.

The summer beach volley season, with 24 events held across the island's popular beaches, also attracted a high entry which continued to lift the game's profile.

This season will see the re-introduction of the Second Division that has not been scheduled for a quite a number of years now.

It was also confirmed that the Spike Girls, the Malta juniors team, will be playing in the European Championship in Easter and in May and June the MVA will host international competitions for men and women.

Since beach volley proved to be a hit in summer, the MVA will be going a step further in 2010 by undertaking an ambitious project.

Plans are in hand for a series of international tournaments, including European Championships.

Discussions were held with the Confederation Europeenne de Volleyball (CEV) who acknowledged the potential of Malta's climate and natural advantages.

These positive qualities make Malta an ideal location for beach volley tournaments, even outside the summer months.

There were also preliminary talks with the authorities and the possible involvement of the Malta Tourism Authority, giving the MVA hope that essential support will be provided.