The unobvious hero of the Polish national team. He manages the entire team
The 2025/26 season in the club, and then playing for the national team, was a successful time for Jan Firlej. The quarterback takes confident steps, fighting solidly for his position.
After Marcin Janusz left the Polish national volleyball team, there was a vacancy in the position of the first setter. Coach Nikola Grbic, as a former great player in this position, certainly looks at this role in a special way.
The 2025 season showed that the Polish coach could count on Marcin Komenda. The quarterback of the then Polish champions (currently silver medalists of PlusLiga), Bogdanka LUK Lublin, took advantage of his opportunity. Behind him, Jan Firlej, who usually plays for PGE Projekt Warszawa, became number 2.
Jan Firlej convinces Nikola Grbic? An important decision in the Poland-Belgium match
And it was the creator of the game in the ranks of the capital club who started the 2026 national team season as the director of the national team. Firlej had Marcel Bakaj next to him in the first VNL tournament in China. Although the 2004 quarterback played quite well in the Silesia Cup friendly tournament, against the more experienced Firlej, he only played in the Nations League.
Komenda has already joined the second intercontinental tournament with the participation of Poles, in the PreZero Arena in Gliwice. After a period of preparation in Spała and a slightly later start of representative duties, compared to Firlej, the Bogdanka LUK volleyball player started the match against Belgium in the starting line-up.
The first two sets against Komenda? 0:2 and big problems for the Polish team. Grbic put Firlej on the pitch, and he led the team’s game skillfully. The PGE Projekt quarterback remained in the game until the end of the match, including: with his former teammate from the Warsaw team, Bartłomiej Bołądź (currently Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie). Both men certainly changed the face of the team.
After the match, coach Grbic talked for a long time with Komenda, most likely explaining the secrets of the game and what happened in the match against the Belgians.
However, it would be unfair to blame Bogdanka LUK’s captain for what happened in the first two sets. However, Firlej gave another important signal of his readiness to jump onto the pitch. Moreover, helping the team when it needs it. Additionally, it must be remembered that coach Grbic is rather conservative when making deeper personal decisions.
However, the Polish national team is going through an interesting period in terms of the present and the future. After the Olympic tournament and the silver medal in Paris in 2024, there were several questions that could still be answered. Remembering, for example, that the 2026 season is also unique in terms of the absence of Bartosz Kurek from the team.
And this opens another thread of discussion, this time related to the role of number 1 as an attacker. The aforementioned Bołądź sent an important signal of readiness in the match against the Belgians, certainly bearing the burden of finishing the action in many parts of the five-set battle.
Nations League: Where and when will the Polish national team play its next matches?
The Poles will play three more matches in Gliwice. Already on Thursday against Turkey (8:00 p.m.) and then on the weekend – Saturday and the clash with Germany (5:00 p.m.) and at the end of the tournament in Gliwice – Poland vs. Argentina (8:00 p.m.).
The last intercontinental tournament in which Poles will take part will be the competition in Chicago (July 15-19).
The Nations League finals will be held in Ningbo, China (July 30 – August 2).
Where to watch volleyball matches? Broadcasts are available on Polsat Sport. Additionally, you can use the Internet, among others: from the Polsat Box Go platform.
