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World League 2005 News
Young and renewed Argentina looking forward
to sparkling return
 May
26, 2005 - After a two year absence, Argentina
fans will once more be able to satisfy their
Volleyball hunger when they witness Argentina
back in action in the premier men’s annual
tournament – the World League – when the 2005
edition starts on Friday.
While the home fans will be packing the stadiums
in Buenos Aires and Rosario in week two, three
and six of the Intercontinental Round, they’ll
have to see how their side first fare in an away
trip to Poland, with the first match at 19:00
(local time) in Bydgoszcz.
Pic: Argentina lost to Poland 3-2 (25-19,
25-22, 23-25, 22-25, 20-18) during the Athens
Olympics but this weekend the visitors will be
missing some stars while Poland have been hit by
injuries
For this tournament, Argentine coach Fabian
Armoa has chosen a young and rejuvenated team,
with 13 of the 18 players coming from the local
league. The big news is the absence of Marcos
Milinkovic, who participated in the seven
previous editions of the World League which
Argentina participated. The other important
player missing is libero Pablo Meana who was
included in Armoa’s original squad but excluded
in the final 18. These two players boast
experience and that is one area this Argentine
side is sorely lacking in.
But despite this handicap, Armoa is still aiming
high. To reach the final round, the team has got
to be in the same state of mind that they were
in when they finished in fifth place at the 2004
Athens Olympic Games and when they recently
booked a ticket for the final round of the 2006
Japan World Championship. The big difference
this time is the omission of key players such as
Milinkovic and Meana.
In Athens, Argentina faced the same three teams
they will play in Pool C and recorded mixed
results, defeating Greece but losing to Serbia &
Montenegro and Poland.
Click here for biographies of the Polish squad
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Competition Formula