The east Europeans have stunned global powers Italy and Cuba in their opening two Pool D matches in Nagoya to put themselves in prime position to qualify for the second round.

At world governing body FIVB's recent congress, Montenegro were accepted as its 219th affiliated member as a separate body from Serbia.

Having qualified for the world championships as Serbia & Montenegro (SCG), the Japan tournament will be their last as a joint nation.

Whatever the two countries' futures, the combined team are determined to make a major impact before their separation.

QUALITY TEAMS

They shocked defending champions Italy 25-18 25-22 19-25 27-25 before beating 2004 Olympic bronze medallists Cuba 25-22 22-25 25-20 25-23.

"We are glad that we showed what we can do against such good quality teams such as Italy and Cuba," SCG coach Zoran Terzic told journalists after their victory over Cuba.

"We knew that only Costa Rica were ranked below us in this tournament, but nevertheless we were convinced that this was not a real picture of the situation."

SCG were ranked 30th in the world at the end of September, compared to Italy's fourth and Cuba's fifth.

They and Costa Rica are the bottom two teams in terms of ranking out of the 24 sides taking part in the tournament.

Their two victories mean SCG are almost certain to be among the four teams who qualify for the second round. Their remaining matches are against Peru, Egypt and Turkey and they are now favourites to top Pool D.

"I don't think that after two games you can become world champion," said captain Vesna Citakovic.

But Cuban coach Felipe Calderon was full of praise for the former Yugoslavia, whose last appearance at the world championships in 1978 saw them finish 16th.

"Serbia and Montenegro are an excellent team," he told journalists. "They were good at controlling their emotions and feelings on the court and kept their feet on the ground until the end."