The Hindu : Sport / Volleyball : Ernakulam men start favourites

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Monday, Nov 30, 2009
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Sport - Volleyball

Ernakulam men start favourites

Principal Correspondent

Tiruvalla: Ernakulam men start as favourites when the State senior basketball championships gets underway at the Public stadium here on Sunday.

Ernakulam, effectively the Customs side, is expected to renew its rivalry with a Thiruvananthapuram side largely made up of players of KSEB. However, Pathanamthitta represented by players from Mar Ivanios College, Kottayam and Thrissur are teams which can cause upsets.

All Districts represented

Fourteen teams, representing all the Districts in the State, will vie for top honours in the section. The teams have been divided into four pools and top three teams from Pool ‘A’ and Pool ‘B’ along with the pool winners of ‘C’ and ‘D’ will qualify for the knock out quarterfinals.

Thirteen teams will take part in the women’s section. Thiruvananthapuram loaded with players from KSEB, looks the odds on favourite to win the title. Defending champion Kollam will be hard pressed to maintain its reputation especially after losing key players. Thirteen teams will take part in the women’s section. The groupings:

Men: Pool ‘A’: Ernakulam, Kasaragod, Kannur and Malappuram; Pool ‘B’: Thiruvananthapuram, Pathanamthitta, Thrissur and Alappuzha; Pool ‘C’: Kottayam, Kozhikode and Wayanad; Pool ‘D’: Palakkad, Idukki and Kollam.

Women: Pool ‘A’: Kollam, Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta; Pool ‘B’: Thrissur, Kozhikode and Malappuram; Pool ‘C’: Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam and Palakkad; Pool ‘D’: Kottayam, Kannur, Idukki and Wayanad.