He did a good job. KB Insurance, joined by Cha Young-seok (30), a small but strong middle blocker, has created a solid center.
Last year, KB Insurance had a weak center. Koreans struggled, but the middle blockers were also the weakest among the seven teams. However, this season is different. The number of successful fastballs increased from 1.89 to 2.16 per set, and the number of blocks increased from 1.905 to 2.333.
It is thanks to newly recruited veterans Park Sang-ha and Cha Young-seok. Rookie Lee Joon-young also boosted his performance by displaying high RBIs and serve. Notably, Cha, who moved to a new team for the first time since his debut as a pro player, is displaying stellar performance. He ranks seventh in fastballs and seventh in blocks, and has an excellent attack success rate of 57.1 percent.
“I didn’t think it was difficult. I thought I came here because this team needed me,” Cha said at the Injinium in Suwon, where KB Insurance’s practice gym is located. “Since I am a volleyball player, I think I can play volleyball and play the game I want to play hard.”
Last offseason, Cha garnered attention from many teams. He signed his first FA contract with his original team Hyundai Capital, but was traded to OK Savings Bank. However, he returned to Hyundai after his trade partner Kwak Myung-woo was suspended. After the Cup, he was traded to KB Insurance setter Hwang Seung-bin and changed his uniform.
Cha said, “I felt calm after hearing the news. I feel like my team trusts me.” In fact, KB Insurance tried a trade deal with OK Savings Bank before bringing Cha in after many twists and turns. “I knew that story, too. Maybe that’s why I wanted to come eventually,” Cha said with a smile. “I know a lot of players in my team. There are Koreans, Na Kyung-bok, Jeong Dong-geun, and (Park) Sang-ha.”
Although he is a transfer student, he is actively communicating with his teammates. “I don’t have any big problems because I am similar to any other team in terms of system,” Cha said. “I also had experience as an acting coach. I led a lot in blocking at Hyundai Capital,” Cha said. “However, it is still difficult to lead team members. Still, I am doing what I learned from watching other players in my own style. Outside the stadium, I play with other players and get along comfortably,” Cha said.
Another strength of Cha is serving. In addition to serving the floater, he can also perform jump serve. He saw Shin Young-seok, a senior and role model who was a teammate of Hyundai Capital, and honed his skills. “I didn’t play spike serve in the beginning of this season, but I am getting more confident,” Cha said. “I am preparing to play according to situations.”
Cha is 93 centimeters tall. He is short as a middle blocker even in Korea. However, he uses technological moves to launch various attacks. “These days, I try to apply what I have done while watching videos from European leagues. I even referred to Roberto Rousseau’s video clip in Perugia, Italy,” Cha said.
Last summer, Cha was summoned to the national team. It was the first time for him to join the national team since the Universiade. As the national team is undergoing a generational change, he played his best role. “It was also true that I was afraid of playing in a foreign country. I thought about how much I could do and how short I was, but when I went there, I felt it was worthwhile,” Cha said. “Actually, I took a long break, but as I did it, I gained confidence. I also matched well with Hwang Taek-ui, a setter who belonged to Sangmu at the time.”
KB Insurance, which was at the bottom of last season, is in sixth place as of Tuesday. However, Na Kyung-bok and Hwang Taek-ui have been on the rise since completing their military service. They only had one win in the first round, including five consecutive losses at the opening, but had three wins and three losses in the second round. As the mid-range competition is fierce, there is a good chance for volleyball to be played in the spring. They are only five points behind Woori Card, which is ranked third.
Cha is also desperate in the post season. He played in four games as the starting player in the 2017-18 season, but hardly stepped on the court in the 18-19 season when he won the title. “Even though I won the regular league championship, I did really bad in the 17-18 season championship,” Cha said. “I was told to take care of myself by exercising all day thinking, ‘Why did I do that?’. Then, I got really hurt in the next season.”
That’s why I desperately want to go to the postseason this season. “My goal is to win the championship all the time,” Cha said. “But now I am older than before. If you are greedy, you will get hurt, so I think it’s important to do what you do without any ups and downs. Then, I think there will be good results.” 안전놀이터
