WEYMOUTH Volleyball are set to compete in the main pre-season National League tournament in the country. They will compete against five of last season’s elite Super 8 clubs plus four Division One outfits, making it probably the strongest one-day event in the country this year.

The tournament is scheduled for Saturday, September 15 and will be played at the National Volleyball Centre at the Ashcombe School in Dorking, Surrey.

Initially the tournament will be divided into two round-robin groups with the top two teams in each group progressing to the semi-finals.

Weymouth can expect stiff opposition from London Malory, London Orcas, London Polonia, Tendering Essex, Local rivals Wessex, Team South Wales, Dark Star Derby, Hertfordshire and home team Ashcombe.

Weymouth go into the fixture at full strength which also includes a trialist from Russia who is moving to the country to attend university.

Also making her first appearance for Weymouth will be Maya Wachula, a very promising Libero player. She is the daughter of Weymouth player Anna Wachula.

Wachula is still officially playing at age group level, but after several training camps in her native Poland she will be stepping up to experience her first senior volleyball.

Captaining the side will be Carol Fogarty who will assume the setting role.

The outside attack will be led by the England Junior pairing of Ailsa and Ilona McDonald while the middle attack will be rotated between Diane Schmidt, Yuri Chadavagh, and Angelika Sierjiej.

Weymouth’s coaching line up will be led by Ian Loke, but also taking a major role on the day will be one of the country’s all-time volleyball greats, Donald Deans.

Deans’ experience on the day will be invaluable as he has first-hand knowledge of the London-based teams.

Weymouth (from): Fogarty, A McDonald, I McDonald, Schmidt, Chadavadh, Sierjiej, Trialist 1, Trialist 2, Mae, M Wachula. Coaching: Loke, Deans