Pressure was the word of the day for Canada captain Nicholas Haug, as they weathered Libya in the FIVB Men’s World Championship. They face Japan next.
It took four sets—including an extended and see-saw fourth frame, but Canada got the job done against Libya to open their 2025 FIVB Men's World Championship at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Saturday, September 13.
World No. 75 Libya, returning to the World Championship after 45 years, made sure to make their presence felt with a 25-22 first set win.
It's only their second appearance in the tournament ever.
For Canada captain Nicholas Haug, they didn't put much pressure while Libya served plenty.
"Maybe a little bit of nerves," admitted Haug. "They played well. We didn't put any serve pressure either. We were not very disciplined in blocking, pretty much throughout the whole game actually."
[ALSO READ: Canada rallies past Libya in four sets to open FIVB Men’s World Championship campaign]
The World No. 11 squad did manage to get back on track, taking the second set (25-20) and the third (25-12).
The fourth though was an extended battle with neither team giving way.
Eventually, opposite spiker Sho Vernon-Evans delivered the championship point for Canada, 29-27.
He was the top scorer with 22 points from 16 attacks, three blocks, and three aces.
Haug said they kept reminding themselves of the game plan and what they needed to execute, particularly with the improvement on blocking.
And they welcomed the pressure to remember what was at stake after finishing 17th in 2022.
"We stayed calm and collected and together. And again, congrats to them because they gave us a great game," he said after tallying 20 points from 15 attacks, a block, and an ace.
"I think it was important for us to struggle moving forward in the tournament."
That pressure will be even greater when they take on World No. 5 Japan on Monday.
"Their great strength is pressure without mistakes. And if you give them a little bit, if you give them a meter, it'll take a kilometer. So we'll have to play a lot better against Japan, that's for sure," Haug noted.
[ALSO READ: SCHEDULE, RESULTS | 32 teams compete in 2025 FIVB Men's World Championship]
Katrina Alba is a sports journalist and producer, notably with SportsCenter Philippines before taking on her current role at One Sports.
She primarily writes about basketball and volleyball, with experience covering the SEA Games, Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. Outside of work, her hobbies include running, swimming, pickleball, yoga, arnis, and krav maga.