Season results: Surgut kept Ugra on the map of big sports

The result of the season for Gazprom-Yugra is generally positive: the main task was completed - the team got into the qualifying round of the playoffs. Can, did not give up and did not merge, talk about the lack of progress compared to last season - still the same 12th place - but upon closer examination there is progress, and quite serious.

Last season, Gazprom-Yugra won tough competition for 12th position from Orenburg Neftyanik, both teams won seven times, but the Surgut team turned out to be higher in points. Key, perhaps, was an away victory in Orenburg on February 18 with a score 3:1.

In the current championship the picture is similar - Ural and I scored 10 victories, took the lead in points, and in many ways the victory in Ufa was decisive 7 February 3:2. But comparing last year’s Neftyanik with the Ural of this season is pointless. Kovacevich, Ebadipur, Butko, Gutsalyuk and Co. are potentially obviously stronger, but they couldn’t avoid a playoff and two defeats from Surgut. Neftyanik also failed to make it into the qualifying round., strengthened by Zemchenko, Sidenko, Makarenko, Spodobtsom, etc.

This is me, that the density of competition (at least at the bottom of the standings) has grown quite noticeably over the year. Instead of the undisputed outsider "Builder", with two wins this season, A very strong Shakhtar entered the Super League, in addition to “Ural” and “Neftyanik”, “Yenisei” and “Nova” have seriously strengthened, recruited a new team "Ugra-Samotlor". Is it a sensational ASC sample 2023 was dismantled and could not restore its former potential, but remained quite competitive.

And in this much denser group, Gazprom-Yugra finished, having three more victories, than in the previous season. It could have turned out even better, If we manage to put the squeeze on Fakel and Shakhtar away at the start of the championship, and at home you can’t lose to ASK, "Neftyanik" and "Nova". But there were also victories, which few people expected from us: in winter they beat Kuzbass and Enisey at home, repeated the success of the first round in Sosnovy Bor and Ufa. Learned to win in fifth games! Last season – five lost tiebreakers, not a single victory, the current ratio is better: two wins and three losses.

At the same time, the team did not avoid personnel problems in key positions.. Shakhbanmirzaev suffered from injuries for a long time, Krsmanovica, Korotaeva, could not cope with the pressure from Katic... One of the key decisions: bring in Alexey Rodichev in the middle of the season, who managed, through experience, to stabilize the situation on the site, inspired confidence in partners.

Another important positive result of the season is the progress of individual players. Gazprom-Yugra is famous for unleashing its potential, and last season was no exception. It was here that the status of Rajabdibir Shakhbanmirzaev as a high-class diagonal level of the Super League was finally formed. But most gratifying is the progress of young people: Maxim Kirillov moved from the rank of setter “in the wings” to the rank of playmaker, capable of holding the game in his hands. To him, of course, still grow and grow, a lot is still raw and needs polishing, but the movement in the right direction is obvious. The player's age reveals very broad prospects, the main thing is not to stop! The same Ivan Skvortsov showed his potential in business, Ivan Korotaev underwent serious training, which can take him to a higher level.

Well, as always, a whole group of players from YUKIOR tried the powder of the Super League. Our youth, by the way, for the first time in history won the regular part of the Russian Championship in the Youth Volleyball League and this fact can also be recorded as a positive achievement of the past season.

Main result: Gazprom-Yugra lives, breathes, fights, achieving almost maximum results, based on available resources. Pleases fans of Surgut and Ugra, leaving our region on the map of big sports in Russia. We are looking forward to the new season, new victories and emotions, new discoveries and achievements!