On Sunday afternoon, the BeNe Conference features the match between leaders Orion Stars and Greenyard Maaseik — a fixture that brings back special memories for 36‑year‑old Gijs Jorna, the man with nearly 350 caps for the Dutch national team, who also spent five mostly enjoyable years in the Belgian league, with Antwerp and Maaseik.

Between that period and now, the cheerful and ever‑friendly Dutchman has built a career spanning six countries. “Chaumont and Toulouse in France, Ploiesti in Romania, PAOK Thessaloniki in Greece, even the tiny and relatively safe Ukrainian town of Horodze near the Romanian border — under good financial conditions, together with Tervaportti (ex‑Roeselare) — then Gdansk in Poland, and now Orion Stars in Doetinchem,” he lists.

Why choose Orion? Didn’t you once swear you would end your career in Antwerp?
Gijs Jorna: “Well, I’m 36, and at that age you start asking yourself questions. What do you still want? I wanted a more social life, closer to family and friends. But I also wanted to play for a team with ambition. My brother Rob is on the board at Orion, and the club clearly wanted to build and take steps forward. I was happy to help with that and let the younger players learn from my experience.
The results show we’ve succeeded: Orion has lost only one league match (against Lycurgus), we’ll play the cup final at Easter, and recently we played a European match in a packed arena against world‑class Fenerbahçe. No shame in losing — the atmosphere was incredible.”

You kept following Maaseik. Why do you think they went through a period without trophies?
“Maaseik has always had a Dutch touch. But I think they mainly ran into Roeselare, who built such a strong structure and attracted the best Belgian players every year. Maaseik kept searching, and there was a constant coming and going of players. And if someone was too good, he left after one season. That made it impossible to build a stable team. But I think they’ve learned from that. Now they’re working toward a more stable future with Woicki, an excellent Polish coach, and with Finali, a very good setter.”

Their former setter, Liam McCluskey, now plays at Orion.
“He struggled with physical problems for a long time, but he became fit just in time. And this season, he’s playing really well.”

Is the match against Maaseik really a big deal in Doetinchem?
“Definitely. We want to win everything: the title, the cup, and ideally pull off a few upsets — either in Europe or in the BeNe Conference. Maaseik is a great benchmark.”

In the champions’ duel, you fell short against Knack Roeselare…
“I think the level of the Belgian top teams is slightly higher than in the Netherlands. But in that cup match against Roeselare, we simply weren’t good. I had just returned from injury myself. We want to show we can do better, and we’ll fight hard. I was happy with our win in Menen, and we still have seven likely high‑level matches ahead. The more we play against top clubs from neighbouring countries, the better we become.”

You have almost twenty years of top‑level experience. What were the highs and lows?
“As an athlete, you want to win as much as possible. During my first foreign stint at Saint‑Quentin, we were relegated. Not fun, but I learned a lot and grew as a person. But my biggest disappointment is that we never reached the Olympic Games with the Dutch team.”
Your best memory?

“There were so many. I’m very proud of my many years with the national team. But the best moment was probably the cup final we won with Antwerp against favourite Roeselare — the match ended 28‑26, with nine match points. Until then, the club had never won anything. We had grown together. Every year we finished in the top three. I look back on it with great fondness: a beautiful city, a fantastic team, a professional environment, a car, an apartment, 14 players at training… but unfortunately the club grew a bit too fast, with the financial consequences that followed.”

At Maaseik, you were named best server and best outside hitter, even though you started as a libero.
“In my youth, I was already an outside hitter. But in the Dutch youth teams, there was so much competition at that position that the coach advised me to try libero. But when Maaseik suddenly had injuries to Maan, Wijsmans and Staples, I returned as an outside hitter — and I stayed in that role for almost my entire career.”

At 36, you’re also thinking about life after your playing career. What comes next?
“I had my doubts. First, I want to get the maximum out of my performances at Orion. After twenty years at the highest level, I’ll stay involved in volleyball anyway. It’s a small world, but it’s my passion. I’m grateful for every day I can still play.
I know I can help younger talents with their career choices, warn them about pitfalls and opportunities, guide them toward the best future based on their abilities… Privately, I’m happy to be back in the Netherlands, and I’ve decided that after my playing career, I’ll become an agent. That will be a full‑time job, because when I start something, it has to be done well.”

Text: MC
Photo: Orion Stars