Study Ireland – Stories & Guides from International Students

As a new member of the Volleyball club UL wolves, I had the opportunity to join this year’s intervarsities in Carlow. This is a tournament where most Universities from Ireland play to fight for the trophy. At this point I had only had one try-out practice and one proper practice with the team. As we started on Friday morning on 31^st  of January at 6 o’clock we had four new team members including me. We headed to Carlow and had our first game at 9 o’clock.  

We played against University of Galway. While we performed really well, the team contained four members on the field that had never played together before which resulted in a loss. We however were excited to play together and saw the potential that lies within this team. The coach Sofie Nolan was injured and could not play. Her coaching abilities were on point nevertheless and she found a balance between pushing the team to its limits and understanding the new formation. At the end of the day the UL team did not qualify for the Cup and was assigned to play the shield or plate tournament. Same goes for the men’s team who faced similar challenges. 

While it felt frustrating for us players to lose 3 games in the first day, we grew together and played so much better as the day went on. The third game was great and reinforced us with our first win. Due to unlucky lottery tickets the fourth game, which could have qualified us for the main cup, was against the University of Trinity, who won the tournament in the end.  

The tournament did not only serve the purpose of playing Volleyball, but also to get to know each other for the upcoming season. After the games we grabbed dinner and spent time together to understand each other better. We realized how many are international students who are here for only one semester and share our love for Volleyball. The night ended with an after-show party in a Pub where the team got to enjoy the culture, relax and loosen their muscles while dancing. For international students this was the perfect opportunity to get to know Irish students who play Volleyball. It is fair to say that Volleyball is a sport that connects people and brings them together. While you are rivals and opponents in a game, you become friends with them outside the court.  

The next morning started early at 9:30 o’clock with the first game for the women and went on great. All games resulted in a win which brought the team together even more. The coach for these games was Cillian O Riordain, who represented the team professionally in a suit. The guys played great as well and gather all wins for UL. This night was full of celebrations and ended together in a hotel room with nice food and enjoying each other’s company. At this point we got to know the team quite closely and were able to build strong friendships in such a short time.  

The next day was followed by semifinals and finals for both the women’s and men’s team, who both won the shield/plate. The mood was great, and we celebrated happily while receiving our medals and trophies. We took the bus home to UL and ended the night with even more team bonding.  

Overall, this tournament brought people from all around the world together and joined them in one thing – their love for the incredible sport of Volleyball. It was a great way as an international student to find people who are like-minded and do something you enjoy. I can highly recommend joining a club or society and participating in something you love.