He feels a heavy sense of responsibility as his team finished at the bottom. Hwang Seung-bin 32, 183 centimeters, a setter of KB Insurance, vowed to rebound in the new season.
After joining Korean Air as the fifth pick in the first round of the 2014-2015 season rookie draft, Hwang joined KB Insurance in the 2023-2024 season through Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance and Woori Card. KB Insurance, which desperately wanted to become a veteran due to the enlistment of its key setter Hwang Taek, picked Hwang as the right person for its ninth year since debut.
However, from his first season with KB Insurance, Hwang Seung-bin experienced bitter taste as his team fell to the bottom. KB Insurance posted five wins, 31 losses and 21 points, humiliatingly ranking the lowest in its history.
"I feel like I spent the season disappointed. Personally, the team as a whole fell short of expectations," Hwang Seung-bin told KB Insurance's Injaeum in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province on Wednesday. "I had high expectations from the team, but I have a lot of regrets that I failed to meet expectations." "I had a hard time as I wondered if I was only this good," he said.
As soon as he built a new nest with KB Insurance, he must have felt a lot of pressure. "I felt more pressure inside the court than the pressure on my team," Hwang said.
"I'm not in a position to evaluate someone, but most of the figures were not good," he said. "There was no smooth part in the attack when I threw, so I felt a lot of pressure not to make a mistake." He added, "I had a lot of thoughts that if I got away from the toss that the striker liked, I wouldn't be able to score."
I had a good feeling at the beginning of the season. "I was confident up until the beginning of the season. The game was running as I thought, and I thought everything was going well," Hwang said. "I was very disappointed that the result was not followed, and I think it was difficult as the slump continued."
At a difficult moment, backup setter Shin Seung-hoon took the opportunity to play, easing the burden. Hwang Seung-bin said, "I was so happy that the player who played for me released the game well and won."
Former coach Hu In-jeong voluntarily resigned due to poor performance during the season. Since then, KB Insurance has played the rest of the season under the acting head coach Kim Hak-min, and confirmed the bottom place with seven games left until the end of the season.
However, players did their best until the end to achieve the successful conclusion. "We were still at the point where we could fully demonstrate that our performance could be revived," Hwang recalled. "I thought a lot about myself having a satisfactory play in the remaining games until the end of the season."
While Hwang Seung-bin faltered, young setters stood out. In particular, Han Tae-joon, a second-year setter of Woori Card, gave a strong impression as he ranked second in the set 11.60 per set.
"Looking at Han Tae-jun, I didn't even dare to do that at that age," Hwang said. "I thought he had outstanding talent." However, he gritted his teeth saying, "I didn't feel a sense of crisis just because young setters were hitting me. I'm still young."
Veteran's record is no less daring than that of a rookie. "I have never led a team to win a championship as a starting setter, but I think I have a lot of great experiences," Hwang said, expressing confidence. "I have a lot of good experiences because I had many difficulties that others have not had."
As Coach Miguel Rivera, a former member of the Spanish national team, has taken the helm, he is strongly determined to rebound in the new season. "The coach is also new, and we need to show a different performance from last season," Hwang said. "If we prepare well, our past experiences will shine."
As soon as Miguel joined the team, he had an interview with his players. "He asked me about his past life and growth in volleyball," Hwang said. "And he also told me what volleyball he pursues and how he wants to run the team."
"If you look at the major indicators of our team, most of them ranked sixth or seventh," Miguel said on the need to strengthen the team, stressing that the part that needs to be improved is not just one or two positions but the team's overall performance. He is still in the process of figuring out the players, but he has a clear philosophy.
Hwang also agreed on this. "When I was training the other day, I looked at the coach's laptop and it contained a lot of content," Hwang said. "The volleyball system that he pursues was very systematic. I felt that it was a really necessary part of our team."
"As the coach said, I think we need to find stability in the overall part of the team," he said. "Overall, it is time for a lot of changes." He expressed his strong will to revive the team in the new season. 토토사이트 추천
KB Insurance is desperately preparing for the new season. Hwang may have his own personal goals.
"To be honest, setting great goals will be difficult. At this point, it is natural that I want to do better than last season," he said. "Even with the same difficulties, I thought I would not be swayed as much as I am and maintain my performance until the end." "I want to become a setter who faithfully plays my role," he said.
