South Rises Again in All Stars Clash

South has recorded victory in both men’s and women’s All Star clashes on the weekend, with both matches highlighted by top quality water polo.

The men from the South have overcome the All Stars North team13-11 in a titanic National LeagueAll Stars game played as the curtain raiser to the Boy’s 14 & Under National Club Championships gold medal final at theValley Pool in Brisbane.

In what would inevitably be indicative of the final result, the South team opened the first quarter with force, scoring four goals courtesy of controlled play with the ball to allow Aussie Sharks player Blake Edwards to score twice while Milos Vukicevic and Sharks’ team mate Aaron Younger (WAIS) both scored once.

For the North team, the opening quarter wasn’t so kind as strong South defence, underlined by a faultless effort fromAustralian goalkeeper James Stanton to save two penalty shots, saw them emerge with just one goal off the arm of Aussie Sharks player Richie Campbell.

It wasn’t until the second quarter thatthe contest evened out as the North team adjusted their tactics to encourage counter attack opportunities that saw Campbell score his second for the game, while fellow Sharks’ player Jarrod Gilchrist also scored.

Despite their improved attack, South maintained control to also score twice, again through Vukicevic as well as Joe Kayeswith their lead sitting at 6-3 entering the half-time break.

Much like the first half, the third quarter again belonged to South as the team focused on maintaining possession and using the entirety of their 30 seconds on the shot clock to set up goals for Kayes who scored his second and Adam Polivka who scored two for the quarter, while North again looked to Richie Campbell for his third and Rhys Howden who scored his first.

If the first three quarters were anything to go by, the South team looked a shoe-in for victory, however the boys on the North team had other plans for the fourth quarter as they rolled in six goals in their attempt to play catch up.Campbell slotted hometwo and Teo Galic, Rhys Howden, BJ Howden and Billy Miller all scoredonce in an effort to take a come from behind victory.

Fortunately for South, their control of the game early on paid dividends in the final quarter, as did their own attacking effort of four goals from Aaron Younger with two, whilst Milos Vukicevic and Mitch Emery both scored once to keep the team ahead.

Western Australian Institute of Sport head men’s water polo coach Paul Oberman was entrusted with leading the victorious South side, with the Barcelona 1992 Olympian commenting afterwards, that he was happy with his side’s execution of their game plan, paying tribute to their defensive effort.

“We went into the game with a bigger, stronger, heavier team so it was paramount to control possession and the North team as they were a lighter and much faster side,” Oberman said.

“We were strongest through centre forward and had good conversion with extra man play, and certainly our goalkeeper played well.”

WAIS athletes Aaron Younger, George Ford, Luke Pavillard and James Fannon all served under their Institute coach for the All Stars match.

Legendary Australian men’s water polo captain Kerr said he was impressed by the quality of the game and believed it was one of the most important fixtures on the calendar.

“The quality of the All Stars is fantastic, we are rich with competitive young players at the moment” Kerr said.

“It was a very clean game played in the right spirit which is important for the junior players to see and it’s also invaluable for the young boys to see our best athletes in their prime.”

The NWPL season resumes with Round 10 on Thursday April 24, with the just two more rounds of the regular season before the highly anticipated finals are played at Valley Pool inBrisbane from May 8-11.

In the women’s All Star Match, the South Al Stars was able to make it three straight, securing a 9-7 win over North.

The best talent of the NWPL came together at Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre (MSAC) on Sundayfor the annual Cathy Parkes Cup women’s National League All Stars game.

All StarsSouth triumphed over the North team 9-7 in a scintillating display of professional water polo that South coach Eddie Denis said he had expected from the two teams.

“The majority of the girls in the water have Australian experience, so we expected high quality play from high quality teams,” Denis said.

True to expectations, the first quarter was fought out with just one goal separating the two sides as South took the upper hand to score twice off WAIS athlete Jessica Zimmerman,while North looked to Sarah Harris for their lone goal.

Zimmerman was joined in representing South, by fellow WAIS athletes Gemma Beadsworth, Glencora Ralph, Zoe Arancini, Lilian Hedges and Eliesha Browne.

With just one goal in it at the start of the second quarter South again struck in the opening two minutes of the second quarter with Aussie Stingers player Zoe Arancini scoring, before Stingers teammate Ashleigh Southern responded with three goals for the North team during the quarter, while another Stingers player, Keesja Gofers also scored one.

Despite a strong effort with four goals in the second quarter, South also managed four goals courtesy of Aussie Stingers duo Olivia King and Glencora McGhie who scored twice to help their side maintain a one-goal advantage at half time.

It was goal for goal in the third with Morgan Baxter scoring first for South,Gofers replyingjust 15 seconds later for North, before youngsterBronte Halligan and Chelsea Allen both found the back of the net for the two sides.

With a single goal separating the All Stars at the start of the final quarter, the prospect of a penalty shootout to decide the game was tantalisingly close for the many junior players watching on, who were soaking up every minute of the world class game on display in front of them.

Defence and possession played a pivotal role in the final term with the North side struggling to execute their opportunities in attack, while also defending against well-organised and relentless attacks from South who eventually scored off Gemma Beadsworth who had been a key player for much of the encounter.

Unable to peg back South, the North team focused on shutting down further attacks for the remaining three minutes of the game to come away with a close loss.

South coach Eddie Denis attributed the win to his side’s control, highlighting the importance of using the younger players in the game.

“We were well organised and had three very exceptional players at our disposal in Beadsworth, Smith and McGhie,” Dennis said.

“Our younger girls contributed well, while the older girls always control the game they often get marked out, which leaves much of the goal scoring opportunities to the younger ones.”

– Water Polo Australia