Volleyball: GB Olympic volleyball side stage trio of Capital clashes

Former Scotland volleyball captain Kenny Barton today urged sports fans not to miss out on a bargain this week – watching the Great Britain Olympic men’s team in action for just £6.

The GB outfit face Belgium in a three-match series at Edinburgh University’s Pleasance Sports Complex in a week that sees the Olympic torch relay hit the streets of Edinburgh.

The team – which will feature former City of Edinburgh player Mark McGivern – open tomorrow night (7pm) and then face the Belgians again on Thursday (1pm) and Saturday (3pm). While Thursday’s match is sold out, there are still tickets left for the other two clashes.

Barton, now performance programme manager at British Volleyball, has been instrumental in bringing matches north of the border for the first time in two years.

He said: “For just £6 – £3 concessions – this is a great opportunity to see one of our Olympic teams in action so close to the Games.”

“Those people who missed out on Olympic tickets for London now have a chance to see a top-quality match on their doorstep.

“The two teams match up pretty well and there were a number of close encounters between them last year.

“It will be a chance for Scottish fans to see how far the GB team has progressed and it’ll be the best volleyball Scotland has seen.”

The GB men will find out this weekend who they are likely to face at London 2012, the first time they have ever played at an Olympics, with the final qualifiers taking place across the globe.