What Position Do Tall People Usually Play In Volleyball?

So You’re Pretty Tall, Huh?

Lots of tall people are nervous about their height in volleyball. You can’t get a job as an air steward if you’re over six feet tall, but if you like your sport, there are spaces on a volleyball team for those of us who tower over the other tiny humans. In fact, the height limit with volleyball goes the other way. You have to be at least five feet to play! But if you’re amongst the tallest on your team, some might say you shouldn’t just play in any old position. Your volleyball team mates should be using your exceptional height. Read through the positions below and decide which one seems like you.

Your volleyball team mates should be using your exceptional height. Read through the positions below and decide which one seems like you.

Tall People In Volleyball ➜ Opposite

Opposites carry a lot of responsibility for their team, and have a lot of defensive duties during game play. They need to be good blockers when playing in the front, and good in defence when playing at the back. Your height should come in useful for both, giving you the extra reach you need to save your team from losing a match.

Tall People In Volleyball ➜ Setter

Setters are usually the team leaders for a reason, their task is extremely important for the team’s success.

Setters are not traditionally the tallest players on the volleyball team. They need to think and move fast, and usually that comes with a smaller physique. The setter is the player in control of the game, and is the most in-demand volleyball position, meaning setters are usually also the highest paid players.

 

Outside Hitter

Outsides are all-round players who need to be good at everything! If you’re super tall, then you’re probably better suited to a defensive role, where your stature can come in much more useful. Outsides move around the whole court, so they need to be quick, agile and alert.

Middle Blocker

Blocking is one of the underestimated skills of volleyball, but it important to help players return the ball before it has even crossed the net.

Having long legs usually means that you’re good at jumping, right? Which is why a lot of taller people end up playing the middle blocker position. The extra height comes in useful when your opponent team are hitting powerful, targeted balls, but you need to be fast too. Ball control for blockers isn’t as important as for liberos, but defence is paramount. Use that imposing physique to stop your opponent from coming anywhere close to scoring.

Libero

The Libero plays at the back only, and is in charge of keeping the ball in play within the court. It’s good to have a tall libero who can get quickly from one area of the court to another, and the extra height comes in useful for unexpected angles and fast balls. However, we all know that in general, the longer our legs and arms are, the harder they are to control, and liberos need to have awesome ball control. If you know that your height can make you a bit clumsier than you should be, then think about playing a position which don’t require such an attention to detail with every movement!

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