In the team of the season, we are looking at everyone involved in the season and how they performed through the regular season and the playoffs.
Sport-S won the National Volleyball League, and it is no surprise they dominated the team of the finals.
The UCU Doves had three players in there; captain Gideon Angiro, Vincent Odeke and Joseph Okello made the team, alongside Thon Maker, John Bosco Thembo, Samuel Engwau and Augustine Odongo.
However, the team of the season, we are looking at everyone involved in the season and how they performed through the regular season and the playoffs.
19:03 - 08.05.2023
VOLLEYBALL Best of the best from National Volleyball League finals
The team is based on the performance in the three games of the finals, and as expected, there will be some big misses due to the limited number of slots.
Of course, that means we are selecting from a much bigger pool of players, and there should be some changes to the team selected from just the finals.
Middle blockers
There were several candidates for these positions, but we only needed two on the final team. Where do we start?
The UCU Doves had a good combination of Vincent Odeke and Ian Akampa throughout the season. The two were excellent all season and guided the team to the finals.
Odeke complemented his block and swift wrist with a consistent jump serve all season to make a case while Akampa went cold in the finals.
20:22 - 08.05.2023
VOLLEYBALL Best of the best from women’s National Volleyball League finals
Shilla Omuriwe’s charges came from a game down to defeat Ndejje Elites 2-1 in the semifinals before sweeping Sport-S in the finals.
Ronald Odyek at KAVC and Bernard Malinga of Nemostars were both great despite failing to guide their teams to the finals.
Picks
Samuel Engwau and Emmanuel Okia (Sport-S)
Engwau is arguably the best middle blocker in the country and stretched his regular season form into the playoffs as Sport-S lifted the title.
He played like a veteran and made life hard for the opposition on the net. And he was not all about blocking; when the reception was right, he scored some crucial points.
20:02 - 07.05.2023
VOLLEYBALL Sport-S defeat UCU Doves to win first league title in 14 years
Saturday’s 3-1 win to level the series handed Sport-S the momentum and quite clearly deflated UCU going into Sunday's decider.
His partner in the middle was great all season and gave Sport-S the net defence required to negotiate the regular season hurdles.
He might have gone a bit cold in the finals, but Okia was up there with the best and is the second pick. So that means we have two middle blockers from the same team, and it is no surprise that's the team that won the league.
Setter
The Sport-S attackers were all as good as their setter Marino Oboke. He might have stepped off the pedal when the stakes were high in the finals, but Oboke was the most consistent setter throughout the season.
He knew how to use his attacking options and got the best out of each and every one. His height also gave Sport-S a good block on various occasions.
Receiver-attackers
Where do we start? In a season where Nemostars struggled and failed to make the playoffs, George Aporu was still great and one of the few positives for the six-time champions.
The Volleyball Cranes captain was ever-present but lacked sufficient support from the rest of the team.
Cosmas Elijah Apunyo is the other name that will miss out on the final team but is worthy of mention. His first pass was great, and he remains one of the consistent servers in the league.
Allan Ejiet at KAVC also had a good season and was one of the consistent scorers for the five-time champions. His reception was great, and he was consistent in the service box.
Picks
Gideon Angiro (UCU Doves) and Thon Maker (Sport-S)
Angiro played like the best player and leader of the team. He could have easily been named MVP if his side had won.
He went through and over blocks all season but also gave his setter the right first pass for most of the season.
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When the team needed points, Angiro was available, scored from the front and backcourt, and took his team close to the title.
Maker is easily the choice for MVP. He made scoring easy against different blocks.
He maintained his regular season form in the finals and was the most significant threat for UCU in attack throughout the finals.
His balanced reception and attack. Stopping him in attack remained a problem for everyone throughout the season.
Opposite
Geoffrey Onapa (KAVC)
He went cold in the semifinals against UCU Doves, but Onapa was the real deal for KAVC in the regular season.
His power in attack scored lots of points for KAVC, and he also consistently gave the team a high block.
Of course, he faced competition from Sport-S' Augustine Odongo and OBB' Jonathan Tumukunde, but Onapa's regular season performance was up there.
Sharif Nabanji (Libero) -OBB
He offered the right first pass for the team and defended as if his life depended on it.
As the captain of the team, Nabanji led from the front. His antics in Game Two of the semifinals had the team back in it to win and level the series.
In a season of confusion and turmoil at OBB, Nabanji remained consistent and was easily the best libero in the league.
John Bosco Thembo at Sport-S, Emmanuel Elanyu at KAVC, Ndejje's Happy Ayebare and UCU's Ogusul made a case for this position.
Benon Mugisha (Coach) -Sport-S
He rotated his team well and knew when to call on the seasoned campaigners. His decision to replace Emmanuel Okia with Dickens Otim paid dividends.
Team of the season
Samuel Engwau (Sport-S)
Emmanuel Okia (Sport-S)
Marino Oboke (Sport-S)
Gideon Angiro (UCU Doves)
Thon Maker (Sport-S)
Geoffrey Onapa (KAVC)
Sharif Nabanji (OBB)
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