Volleyball

Volleyball is not considered to be a major sport in our province. It may be a surprise to some that there is a thriving local league and national teams competing in World Championships and European Small Nations events. However, taking a more broad view, volleyball has the distinction of being one of the world’s most popular sports and Campbell is proud to contribute to a fast growing local volleyball community.
 
Within Campbell, students have the opportunity to play volleyball in house competitions, U14, U16 & U18 Schools level and in representative squads. Four of our current squad have represented Northern Ireland at U17 or U19 level. Campbell players are regularly selected to compete at the UK School Games or in the traditional St Patrick’s Day International between Northern Ireland and The Republic of Ireland.  
 
Students can use their volleyball participation as part of their GCSE and A level PE courses and many also use volleyball as a skill for Duke of Edinburgh Award.
 
Volleyball is a sport frequently cited in Sports Psychology texts, because of the frequent changes in mental readiness required during play. A single point in volleyball requires players to be calm and relaxed for passing, then aggressive for hitting only moments later. Players also learn not to berate themselves or teammates for mistakes and how to work together as a team.
 
Many of our players have gone on to play successfully in senior volleyball, with two Old Campbellians, Tom Napier and Conor Doherty, winning the 2013 Senior Mens Cup while playing for UUJ alongside current U16 player, Niall Burton.
 
It has also been a privilege to have some former players come back to Campbell in a coaching role. Conor has also helped coach our U16 squad for the last 2 years, with another OC, Stephen Johnston, also coaching our U14 to Cup success in 2012.
 
At Campbell our volleyball teams have enjoyed relative success at all levels and in both indoor and beach volleyball.
 
In the 2012/2013 indoor Season, Campbell won the inaugural U14 Schools’ League, retained the U14 Schools’ Cup, were finalists in the U16 Schools’ League, Semi-finalists in the U16 Schools’ Cup and finalists in the U18 Schools’ Cup.
 
Campbell are also current U16 Schools’ Beach Volleyball Champions and were beaten finalists at U14 level in 2012.