Water Polo

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100K in a day

2/8/2010

National League 2010 fundraising program
24 hour relay starting at 07.00 on Friday 3rd September at the Aquarena
Please click here for details

Match Review

26/7/2010

We have had a very busy and successful week with the under 15 squad winning all three matches in the London league on Sunday and the senior team winning two county league matches.

The under 15 review has already been filed but following are the details of the senior matches.

1. Wednesday 21st July 2010.

Sussex County Senior League.

Worthing 17, Brighton "A" 7. (Quarter scores: 4-2, 3-1, 4-1, 6-3)

This was our first home match for some time and we were looking forward to a tough match against a much improved Brighton team.

We are lucky to be able to field a very strong team at the moment with a number of our players who are away in full time education now being back at home and available for selection.

Having enjoyed a good win at Crawley on the previous Wednesday, we knew that Brighton would offer a good standard of opposition who would give us a proper test. This proved to be the case and although the final score may indicate a relatively easy win this was a tough match, particularly in the early stages.

That said, we always controlled the match and we were guilty of missing a number of chances that we would normally have expected to score from.

Defensively we worked hard to limit the opposition to a relatively small number of chances and Ben Alcorn produced a number of fine saves when called upon.

Overall a satisfactory win that again gave a good indication of the ability of this talented group of players.

Scorers: Scott Martin 6, Joel Abbott 5, Ziggy Tate 3, Matt White 2, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Exclusions: Adrian Irbe 1, Ziggy Tate 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Squad in full: Ben Alcorn (G/K), Jon Gray, Adrian Irbe, Tim Brazier, Sam Abbott, Dominic Cranford, Scott Martin, Ziggy Tate, Nathan Hart, Joel Abbott, Matt White, Alastair Hardinge.

2. Friday 23rd July 2010.

Sussex County Senior League.

Brighton "B" 4, Worthing 17. (Quarter scores: 5-1, 5-1, 4-2, 3-0)

The second match in 48 hours was against the second string Brighton team at the Prince Regent pool which is shallow and narrow and far from ideal for the playing of water polo.

With several players unavailable we had a much smaller squad and we included Joe Hazeldine, who only turned 13 years of age in January, for what was a remarkable debut in senior water polo.

The match itself was of a reasonable standard and Brighton defended well for long periods without looking particularly threatening in attack.

We always created chances and we scored a number of well worked goals and Joel Abbott was particularly prolific scoring 7 times.

Joe was slightly reticent to make his entry into the match but in the third quarter he produced a hugely entertaining cameo scoring two excellent goals shortly followed by being excluded for a major foul and then managing to injure his thumb. As a result he played no further part but he had made his mark and he is undoubtedly the youngest Worthing scorer in a senior match for many years.

Scorers: Joel Abbott 7, Sam Abbott 3, Matt White 2, Joe Hazeldine 2, Ben Alcorn 1, Andy Cawdery 1, Dominic Cranford 1.

Exclusions: Sam Abbott 1, Alastair Hardinge 1, Andy Cawdery 1, Joe Hazeldine 1.

Squad in full: Alexander Cranford, Dominic Cranford, Joel Abbott, Sam Abbott, Alastair Hardinge, Andy Cawdery, Joe Hazeldine, Ben Alcorn, Matt White, Alastair Roberts.

The squad continues to train throughout the summer as we build up to the national league season which commences in September at Ponds Forge, Sheffield.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

19/7/2010

London League Under 15 Championship.

Tournament 3.

Whitgift School, South Croydon.

Sunday 18th July 2010.

We travelled to the latest tournament in this season's championship having enjoyed some excellent results in the two previous events when the potential of our young squad was finally being rewarded with improved performances.

The team is now much more competitive and now looks particularly well organised defensively as well as having a much improved attacking threat.

At this event we looked forward to three matches against Basingstoke, Enfield and West London/Ealing and we were confident that if we played well we would have a chance of three wins.

These are the individual match reports:

Match 1. Worthing 8, Basingstoke 1. (H/T 4-0)

This was a satisfactory win against an enthusiastic opposition but we were always in control of the match and the final score was a fair reflection of our dominance.

Our speed on the counter-attack always caused the opposition problems and we scored a number of good quality goals as a result.

Ben, Joe and Sam shared the goals but this was a good all-round team performance.

Scorers: Ben Goddard 3, Joe Hazeldine 2, Sam Wildman 2.

Exclusions: Ben Goddard 1.

Match 2. Worthing 6, Enfield 1. (H/T 3-1)

Another good win when the team defended well but didn't quite play with the same attacking skill as in the first match.

Too many shots were taken when a pass should have been made to a team-mate in a better position and as a result we wasted a number of chances.

We always controlled the match and we were the better team throughout and the final score again indicated our overall dominance.

Scorers: Ben Goddard 3, Joe Hazeldine 1, Karen Chan 1, Olly Rainford 1.

Exclusions: Olly Rainford 1, Ben Goddard 1.

Match 3. Worthing 8, West London/Ealing 3. (H/T 3-1)

A good performance to finish the day when we again dominated and were well worth another fine win.

Once again, we defended well and Henry made a number of good saves when required.

We scored a number of good goals and it was particularly pleasing to see Harleigh score her first goal after good play from Joe and Ben.

Ben unfortunately didn't see the end of the game having had his lip cut after an accidental elbow in the final few minutes.

Scorers: Joe Hazeldine 3, Ben Goddard 2, Sam Wildman 1, Harleigh Goddard 1, Karen Chan 1.

Exclusions: None.

Squad in full: Henry Jackson (G/K), Joe Hazeldine, Ben Goddard, Harleigh Goddard, Karen Chan, Olly Rainford, Sam Wildman & Callum Craven.

Overall this was another encouraging performance from our younger squad.

The team is now beginning to make real progress and this is illustrated by the much improved results.

We now enjoy a break for the holiday period before the final tournament in September.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

18/7/2010

Sussex Senior League.

Wednesday 14th July 2010

Crawley 9, Worthing 20. (Quarter scores: 7-2, 5-2, 4-2, 4-3)

The trip to Crawley is now a highlight of the county water polo season because we play against a much improved, and as a result competitive opposition, at the excellent 50 metre deep water pool at the K2 complex. Crawley are making good progress as a water polo club with a significant increase in junior players mainly due to these vastly improved facilities. Lets hope that the replacement pool for the Aquarena manages to incorporate some of these more modern type of facilities, particularly the inclusion of variable water depth in the main swimming pool.

The match itself was an entertaining affair which we controlled throughout, particularly after a very positive start in the first quarter.

Crawley struggled to deal with our attacking play with Matt White and Joel Abbott always causing problems from the centre forward position. Our swift counter-attacking also led to a number of goals but we really should have scored more but our finishing was never at it's best.

We experimented for long periods with a zonal defence and although it worked relatively well we did concede a number of disappointing goals that really should have been avoided but we will learn from this and improve in future games.

Overall, a satisfactory win but we knew that we hadn't played our best water polo.

Scorers: Joel Abbott 6, Scott Martin 6, Matt White 5, Jon Gray 1, Alastair Hardinge 1, Sam Abbott 1.

Exclusions: Nathan Hart 1.

Squad in Full: Alexander Cranford, Jon Gray, Adrian Irbe, Ben Alcorn, Matt White, Sam Abbott, Dominic Cranford, Scott Martin, Ziggy Tate, Nathan Hart, Joel Abbott, Andy Cawdery, Alastair Hardinge.

The next match is another county senior league game against Brighton at the Aquarena this coming Wednesday (21st July).

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

4/7/2010

London League.

Junior Boys Championship

Tournament 3, Sunday 4th July.

Whitgift School, Croydon.

We returned to the familiar setting of Whitgift School for the latest round of this years London League.

The excellent 25 metre, 8 lane all deep pool is always a good venue to play at and we were looking forward to three tough matches against Sutton & Cheam, Croydon Amphibians and Watford.

Unfortunately we were missing a number of players with Scott Martin away at GB training in Sheffield and Sam Maloney and Charlie Jones also unavailable. Our squad of 8 players knew that they would have to work hard and these are the individual reports:

1. Worthing 5, Sutton & Cheam 4. (H/T 1-1)

A tough and physical opening match against a strong Sutton team.

We actually should have made the match safe during the first half but we contrived to miss several opportunities that we really should have taken.

This kept Sutton in the match and they eventually equalised with just over a minute left. Sam Abbott scored a late winner which secured the points.

Unfortunately Peter Flynn was deliberately punched in the eye during the match in an incident that was missed by the officials, but even though the swelling almost closed the eye completely, he continued to play his part in a good win.

Scorers: Sam Abbott 2, Alexander Cranford 2, Nathan Tonkin 1.

Exclusion: Peter Flynn 1.

2. Worthing 7, Croydon Amphibians 1. (H/T 5-1)

A really good win against our old rivals when we played some really good and controlled water polo.

Our defensive play was of a high standard and limited the opposition to a small number of chances.

In attack we always looked likely to score and Sam and Alexander both posed the opposition lots of problems from the centre forward position.

Overall an excellent win which demonstrated the high standard of water polo that we are able to play at times.

Scorers: Sam Abbott 5, Alexander Cranford 1, Nathan Tonkin 1.

Exclusions: Olly Rainford 1, Kevin Chan 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

3. Worthing 1, Watford 5. (H/T 0-3)

Unfortunately we finished with a disappointing defeat against a much improved and well organised Watford team.

We never really recovered from a poor start which saw the team concede a poor defensive goal in the opening play.

This seemed to knock our confidence and we never really found our true form as we tried to get back into the match.

Too many basic errors were made and we were punished on several occasions.

Scorer: Alexander Cranford.

Exclusions: Kevin Chan 1, Olly Rainford 1, Sam Abbott 1.

Squad in Full: Sam Wildman (G/K), Sam Abbott, Alastair Hardinge, Peter Flynn, Alexander Cranford, Olly Rainford, Nathan Tonkin & Kevin Chan.

Overall, this was a mixed day for our boys team and obviously we were disappointed to lose the last match but we played well in fist two games and deserved the wins.

All the boys worked really hard and Peter Flynn was particularly heroic to play on despite being able to see out of only one eye.

We will learn from the defeat and the squad can be pleased with a great deal of the play they produced.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

12/6/2010

Sussex Senior Knock-out,

Thursday 10th June 2010.

Hastings 7 (1 + 6 goal handicap) , Worthing 17.

(Quarter scores: 0-2, 0-6, 0-4, 1-3)

The trip to Hastings is the longest journey that we make during the county season and it was interesting this year to compare and contrast the playing facility with the excellent new pool that our juniors played in on Sunday in Watford.

The Hastings pool is an old fashioned 25 metre, 6 lane, deep-shallow facility that compares poorly with the new modern 25 metre, 8 lane pool with variable water depth like the recently opened £13m Watford leisure centre. How strange that Worthing Borough council have decided to build a new pool, at the significant cost of £17m, which will be the same format as Hastings and not the more modern design that is rapidly becoming the norm in the UK.

The match itself was a one sided affair with the 6 goal handicap being overtaken as early as the mid-point of the second quarter.

Our defensive play was always far too strong for Hastings and the small number of chances they created were dealt with by Ben Alcorn in the Worthing goal. Ben found time to come out of goal and help himself to a couple of goals and our overall attacking play always created chances.

We actually might have scored a number of more goals but we missed several chances when it probably was easier to score.

Overall a satisfactory win, highlighted by the excellent chips on the way home!

Scorers: Sam Abbott 6, Paul Phillpott 4, Alastair Hardinge 3, Ziggy Tate 2, Ben Alcorn 2.

Exclusions: Alastair Hardinge 2.

Squad in full: Ben Alcorn, Sam Abbott, Alastair Hardinge, Paul Phillpott, Andy Cawdery, Ziggy Tate, Nathan Hart, Alastair Roberts.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

8/6/2010

London League Junior Boys Championship.

Tournament 2.

Woodside Leisure Centre, Watford.

Sunday 6th June 2010.

The second tournament in this seasons London league junior championship was played at the excellent new 25 metre, 8 lane, deep water pool in Watford.

With Worthing Borough Council about to spend potentially £17m on the replacement pool for the Aquarena, it would make sense for the decision makers to take a drive round the M25 to see what can be achieved with only £12.5m.

On Sunday we faced three tough matches against a fast improving Basingstoke, West London Penguin and the home team.

These are the individual match reports:

1. Worthing 13, Basingstoke 3. (H/T 6-1)

This was a satisfactory opening performance against a Basingstoke team that has much improved over the past few months.

We were quickly into our stride playing with an aggressive defence which limited the opposition to a small number of chances.

In attack we always had too much pace, strength and know-how and we scored a number of quality goals.

Scorers: Scott Martin 6, Sam Abbott 3, Alexander Cranford 2, Alastair Hardinge 2.

Exclusions: None.

2. Worthing 7, Watford 2. (H/T 4-1)

Another good win against a better standard of opposition who always made things difficult for us.

That said, we never quite took control of the match as we are capable of, but we were still comfortable winners and we again scored a number of quality goals.

We defended soundly and we never looked like conceding many goals.

Scorers: Sam Abbott 3, Scott Martin 2, Alexander Cranford 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Exclusions: Kevin Chan 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

3. Worthing 4, West London Penguin 6. (H/T 2-4)

This was a disappointing performance when we failed to play anywhere near the standard that we are capable.

Having defended so well in the previous matches we lost our shape and discipline, particularly early on, and we were punished as a result.

Our overall play was nowhere near our normal standard and we committed far too many unforced errors and we were particularly guilty of giving the ball away.

Towards the end we were pushing hard for an equaliser but we were eventually undone by the award of a harsh penalty which resulted in the final two goal deficit.

One positive to take form the match was an outstanding display in goal from Sam Wildman, who is the youngest member of the squad. He made a number of fines saves that always kept us in the match and he should be very pleased with the way that he played.

Scorers: Scott Martin 2, Sam Abbott 2.

Exclusions: Alastair Hardinge 1.

Squad in Full: Sam Wildman (G/K), Sam Abbott, Alastair Hardinge, Scott Martin, Alexander Cranford, Kevin Chan, Olly Rainford & Charlie Jones.

In conclusion, although it was disappointing to lose the last match, we still played some very good water polo at times. The three young squad members (Olly, Charlie and Sam Wildman) all played well in this older age group and will have gained a great deal from the experience.

The final event takes place back at the familiar surroundings of Whitgift School in Croydon in July when we still will have a chance of taking the overall title.

Kind regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

17/5/2010

London League Ladies Championship (Division 2)

Tournament 2,

Whitgift School, South Croydon.

Sunday 16th May.

After the first tournament two weeks when we won all three matches, we travelled once again to the familiar surroundings of Whitgift School for the second event in this summer's championship.

We enter this competition jointly with Basingstoke and unfortunately we were missing a number of players who were involved at the first event, but we still had a squad of 9.

The program would see us play tough matches against Penguin and Beckenham and these are the individual match reports.

Match 1.

Worthing/Basingstoke 3, Penguin 4. (H/T 2-2)

A frustrating result to a match that we certainly didn't deserve to lose but we suffered ultimately from missing too many chances as well as a couple of defensive errors.

We actually played well for long periods and our speed of swimming and attacking play always caused the opposition problems. As already mentioned, we created the chances but failed to convert some key opportunities.

Penguin were always struggling to deal with our play and that is best illustrated by the exclusion count which saw the opposition commit 6 major fouls.

The final few seconds ultimately cost us even a well deserved draw. We had a good chance to score the winner but we missed the shot and from the resulting Penguin attack we conceded a poor goal.

Overall a frustrating end to a game which we definitely deserved to take something from.

Scorers: Jenny Willett 2, Hannah Chilton 1.

Exclusions: None.

Match 2.

Worthing/Basingstoke 2, Beckenham 6. (H/T 0-3)

We had to play this match straight after the Penguin match and this was reflected in a poor start when we conceded 3 quick goals.

Our play in the first half was not of our normal standard and we found it really hard to get going.

The second period saw some improvement and we did manage to score two good goals but we also contrived to miss several other chances that we probably should have converted.

It is never easy to play back to back games but our girls will learn from the experience and I am sure that we will be better prepared for this the next time we play.

Scorers: Jenny Willett 1, Chrissy Pilcher 1.

Exclusion: Pauline Lipscombe 1.

Squad in Full: Fi McMullan (G/K), Hannah Chilton, Sarah Hickey, Pauline Lipscombe, Jenny Willett, Chrissy Pilcher, Rachel Piper, Tara Osborne & Laura Joseph.

Overall we were disappointed not to win at least one of these matches but we still can take a number of positives from the way that we played.

The team did play some good quality water polo at times and the younger players particularly will learn a great deal from having had a good amount of water time.

The next tournament is played in June but we are "seeded" to miss that event. We will play at the final tournament in July and this will decide our final position.

Kind regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

4/5/2010

London League Ladies Championship Division 2.

Tournament 1.

Whitgift School, South Croydon.

Sunday 2nd May 2010.

This is the report of the opening tournament in this summers Ladies London league campaign.

After the success last year when we entered a combined team with Basingstoke ladies we made the decision that we would follow the same formula that worked so well.

Most of the girls from the two clubs know each other well and they enjoy playing together in the same team.

The format for this tournament would see our girls play three matches against West London Penguin, Beckenham and Southampton and this looked to be demanding program.

These are the individual match reports.

1. Worthing/Basingstoke 5, Beckenham 1. (H/T 2-1)

This was an excellent match of a good quality against a young but well organised opposition who always made things difficult for us.

We defended really well using an aggressive full press throughout the match and Beckenham found it hard to create many chances. Attacking wise we always looked likely to score and it was only some poor finishing that cost us a number of other goals.

Overall this was a satisfactory win that saw the team play some good water polo.

Scorers: Jenny Willett 3, Fi McMullan 1, Amy Styles 1.

Exclusion: Debby Willett 1.

2. Worthing/Basingstoke 4, West London Penguin 2. (H/T 2-0)

A high quality match against a talented and physical opposition when we had to raise our game to secure a really hard fought win.

We also had the problem of scoring past an outstanding opposition goal-keeper who made a number of excellent saves. But we played well enough to create a number of chances and again our defending was of a high quality which frustrated the opposition for long periods. Our speed on the counter-attack always caused the opposition problems and this was reflected in the high number (6) of exclusions that they conceded.

The key moment in the game was when we led 2-1 in the second-half and Amy made an excellent save. From the resulting counter-attack we scored again to give us a 3-1 advantage which soon became 4-1.

Penguin scored late on but we had still done enough to secure a well deserved win

Scorers: Jenny Willett 2, Chrissy Pilcher 1, Fi McMullan 1.

Exclusion: Sarah Hickey 1.

3. Worthing/Basingstoke 4, Southampton 2. (H/T 2-1)

Another tough match against a team with a number of players who have experience playing in the national league.

We played well again with our defending limiting the opposition to a small number of chances and as in the previous matches we always looked dangerous on the counter-attack.

Once again, it was only our inability to take a number of the chances that we created that kept the winning margin down, but we always looked the team most likely to score.

Jenny hurt her shoulder during the first period and had to sit out the second-half but we continued to play well and we secured another good win.

Scorers: Hannah Chilton 1, Fi McMullan 1, Claire Liggins 1, Sarah Hickey 1.

Exclusions: Debby Willett 1, Hannah Chilton 1.

Squad in Full: Amy Styles (G/K), Kayley Alcorn (G/K), Claire Liggins, Hannah Chilton, Sarah Hickey, Fi McMullan, Jenny Willett, Debby Willett, Chrissy Pilcher, Tara Osborne, Laura Joseph.

Overall this was an excellent tournament for our combined team. All the squad members played well and we produced a very good standard of water polo for long periods.

The two youngest members of the squad, Tara and Laura, both played well and enjoyed a good amount of water time and they will have learnt a great deal from this opportunity to play with senior players.

We return to the same venue in two weeks time for the second tournament of this competition.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

26/4/2010

London League Junior Boys Championship (1992 + Younger)

Tournament 1, Whitgift School, South Croydon

Sunday 25th April.

We travelled to the familiar surroundings of Whitgift School for the first round of this summer's junior London league competition.

With Peter Flynn still stuck in New York because of the travel chaos caused by the Icelandic volcano and Luke Helmer unavailable due to work commitments, we were only able to take a squad of 9 players including the three under 16 squad members Olly Rainford, Charlie Jones and Sam Wildman.

The individual match reports are as follows:

Match 1. Worthing 6, Sutton & Cheam 1. (H/T 4-1)

A satisfactory win against an enthusiastic opposition but we really should have won by a much greater margin if we had taken our chances.

We defended well but we contrived to miss several opportunities when it looked easier to score. Sam Wildman, who is the youngest squad member, produced one excellent save when required but this was really a workmanlike rather than spectacular win.

Sam Abbott had a good game at centre-forward and the opposition always struggled to deal with him

Scorers: Sam Abbott 5, Scott Martin 1.

Exclusion: Scott Martin.

Match 2. Worthing 7, Basingstoke 3. (H/T 3-1)

This was better performance against a fast improving team who always made it difficult for us.

We always looked the better team but we never really dominated until we scored a couple of late goals but some below standard defending gave Basingstoke a couple of goals that we were disappointed to concede.

This was a deserved win but we realised that we still hadn't really played as well as we would have hoped to.

Scorers: Alastair Hardinge 3, Sam Abbott 2, Sam Maloney 1, Kevin Chan 1.

Exclusion: Kevin Chan.

Match 3. Worthing 5, Croydon Amphibians 4. (H/T 3-2)

The final match was against our old rivals who always give us a good game, particularly in their home pool.

We knew that we would probably have to play something near our best to beat this talented opposition but we knew that we should be capable of getting a positive result.

Unfortunately we started poorly and conceded a bad goal early on but we eventually got going and started to take control. At the mid-point we looked like we would go on and win fairly comfortably but we again missed some chances and as a result Croydon were always in the game.

Sam Wildman made another excellent save, (with his face!) and eventually a goal by Sam Abbott finally secured the win.

Scorers: Sam Abbott 4, Alastair Hardinge 2, Scott Martin 1.

Exclusion: Kevin Chan.

Squad in Full: Sam Wildman (G/K), Alexander Cranford, Sam Abbott, Sam Maloney, Scott Martin, Kevin Chan, Olly Rainford, Charlie Jones & Alastair Hardinge.

Overall this was a good tournament for our junior team and we were delighted to win all three matches.

That said, we never quite played as well as we can but still did enough to win the three games.

We are looking forward to the next tournament which takes place at the excellent new deep water pool complex in Watford in June.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

19/4/2010

London league Under 15 Championship. (Born 1996 + younger)

Tournament 1.

Whitgift School, Croydon.

Sunday 18th April.

We travelled to the first tournament of this summer's competition looking forward to playing three tough matches against Croydon Amphibians, Enfield and West London/Ealing.

The squad available included two of our youngsters (Nathan Jones and Harley Goddard) who were making their competitive debut in junior water polo but they were both looking forward to the opportunity.

The individual match reports are as follows:

1. Croydon Amphibians 5, Worthing 3. (H/T 4-0)

This was very much " a game of two halves" when we performed poorly in the first period before dominating the second-half.

This uneven performance was probably as a result of not having played for a while and we were guilty of conceding three very poor goals in the first half. We managed to re-organise things at the half-time interval and as result we put Croydon under a huge amount of pressure resulting in three quick goals. We were pressing for an equaliser when Croydon managed to score a break-away goal which made the game safe.

Scorers: Sam Wildman 1, Karen Chan 1, Joe Hazeldine 1.

Exclusion: Ben Goddard.

2. Worthing 14, Enfield 0. (H/T 6-0)

This was a good performance against a young and inexperienced opposition.

The Worthing youngsters played well throughout and scored a number of excellent goals and it was nice to see 5 different scorers. Our defending was of a high standard and when Ealing did create some chances, Henry Jackson in goal produced a number of good saves.

It was nice to record a relatively comfortable win which we hoped would give us confidence in the final match of the afternoon.

Scorers: Ben Goddard 4, Sam Wildman 4, Joe Hazeldine 3, Callum Craven 2, Karen Chan 1.

Exclusions: None.

3. Worthing 3, West London/Ealing 2. (H/T 2-1)

A highly exciting match against a talented and physically imposing opposition.

We stressed at the pre-match meeting that we needed to utilize our swimming speed on the counter-attack and we always looked dangerous when we had these opportunities.

After a good start we soon led 2-0 but the opposition equalised just before half-time. The second period was a close affair but we kept creating chances and we were worried that if we didn't take one the opposition might sneak a winner.

In the end, we managed to score in the final minute when Nathan Jones (who was making his debut) scored with an excellent shot into the corner.

This was a good win in the type of match that previously we might have contrived to lose but the team now has greater experience and ability.

Scorers: Sam Wildman 1, Joe Hazeldine 1, Nathan Jones 1.

Exclusions: None.

Squad in Full: Henry Jackson (G/K), Karen Chan, Harley Goddard, Ben Goddard, Joe Hazeldine, Sam Wildman, Callum Craven, Nathan Jones.

Overall this was a good tournament for our young team with two good wins and a narrow defeat when we nearly recovered from the only poor period that we produced on the day.

This group of young players are now beginning to fulfill the promise that they have shown for a while now and the win in the final game indicated the progress that we are now making.

We are looking forward to the second tournament when we hope to continue this improvement.

Kind regards,

Alastair.

Inter-county Water Polo Tournament

27/3/2010

WSC members Sam Abbott, Kevin Chan, Peter Flynn, Alastair Hardinge and Sam Maloney were part of the successful Sussex team that played in 2010 inter-county championship at Basingstoke which is detail in the attached report.

National League Fixtures 2010

27/3/2010

Click here for details.

2010 South East Region Championship Photo

22/3/2010

Click here for photo album.

Match Review

21/3/2010

This is the latest water polo report of another busy year.

The men's senior team travelled to Jersey for the second tournament of the 2010 south-east region championship facing a busy program of 4 matches in two days.

With a number of our first team players unavailable this year for a variety of reasons we only had a squad of 9 players and with the program of games this looked to be a demanding weekend. One of the players unfortunately ruled out of playing through injury was Richard Hooper and he took over the coaching duties.

The tournament was again held at the Les Quennevais leisure centre pool which has a very shallow end which makes attacking very awkward and we always struggle to adapt our play to these conditions.

The individual match reports are as follows

Saturday, 13.00

Worthing 11, Oxford 3.

Quarter Scores 3-0, 1-2, 2-1,5-0.

An entertaining and satisfactory start to the campaign saw the Worthing squad take control in the first quarter and play some good water polo.

With a well organized defence we limited the opposition to a small number of chances and we always looked likely to score in attacking situations.

Joel was hugely effective at centre forward when attacking the deep end goal and he ended the match having scored 6 times.

Scorers Joel Abbott 6, Ziggy Tate 2, Ben Alcorn 1, Sam Abbott 1, Nathan Hart 1.

Exclusions Ben Alcorn 1, Ziggy Tate 1, Alastair Hardinge.

Saturday, 16.45

Worthing 10, East Invicta 11

Quarter Scores 1-3, 3-3, 3-4, 3-1

A very tough match against a talented team drawn from several clubs in Kent.

We probably deserved to take something from this game and we were denied a perfectly good goal when Joel scored with a well taken penalty which the officials failed to give even though quite clearly the ball had crossed the line.

We never quite played well enough to control this game and we missed chances at key moments in the game.

Although we were disappointed to lose we knew that two wins in the Sunday fixtures would see us retain the title.

Scorers Joel Abbott 3, Ben Alcorn 2, Ziggy Tate 2, Sam Abbott 1, Nathan Hart 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Exclusions Ziggy Tate 2, Sam Abbott, Nathan Hart 1, Joel Abbott 1.

Sunday, 08.45

Worthing 10, Jersey 7

Quarter Scores 2-3, 1-2, 4-1, 3-1

Having thoroughly enjoyed the hosts hospitality the previous evening, the 08.30 start time of this match was always going to be an interesting experience for some members of the squad.

This proved to be the case when we made a very poor start conceding goals that really should have been avoided and missing a hatful of chances.

Although we made such a poor start we did finally start to convert some of chances that we continued to create.

This was a below par performance against an enthusiastic Jersey team who understood the way to play in this type of pool and the final score probably flattered us. Jersey missed a penalty late on that would have made the score 9-8 but we straight down the other end to score again and make the game safe.

Sunday, 12.15

Worthing 9, Southampton 3

Quarter Scores 2-1, 3-0, 2-0, 2-2

A disciplined performance against a talented team who had already beaten Jersey and who would go on to beat East Invicta.

We knew that we would have to make a positive start and defend well to take control. This proved to be the case and our defending was really the key to the victory and after conceding once in the first period our defence was so dominant that Southampton only scored again with two late goals deep into the final quarter.

Our attacking play probably wasn't quite at it's best but we did score a number good goals including one from Joel after an excellent pass from Rob Osborne.

Scorers Joel Abbott 4, Ziggy Tate 2, Sam Abbott 2, Gregg Candy-Wallace 1.

Squad in full Joel Abbott, Sam Abbott, Ziggy Tate, Nathan Hart, Ben Alcorn, Rob Osborne, Alastair Roberts, Gregg Candy-Wallace, Alastair Hardinge.

Overall this was a highly entertaining event and the three wins meant that we retained the title that we had won the previous year.

Although we did have a number of key players missing the small squad that we played the tournament with all contributed a great deal.

Everyone put in a good "shift" and we had to play some good water polo at times to secure victory.

We were greatly indebted to our noisy and enthusiastic followers who supported the team throughout and added a huge amount of encouragement to the team.

The season continues with the Sussex county league fixtures commencing in May building toward our second season in the national league which starts in September.

Alastair Roberts.

Fixtures 2010

20/3/2010

Click here for details.

Match Review

15/2/2010

Please receive a Report of the first tournament in the 2010 South East Regional Men's water polo championships.

Basingstoke Aquadrome.

Saturday 30th January.

Match 1.

Worthing 23, Jersey 7.

Scorers: Matt White 5, Joel Abbott 4, Paul Phillpott 4, Ziggy Tate 3, Sam Abbott 3, Alastair Hardinge 2, Nathan Hart 1, Ben Alcorn 1.

Exclusions: Joel Abbott 2, Nathan Hart 1, Sam Abbott 1.

Match 2.

Worthing 21, Southampton 12.

Scorers: Joel Abbott 10, Ziggy Tate 4, Paul Phillpott 4, Matt White 1, Sam Abbott 1, Nathan Hart 1.

Exclusions: Matt White 1, Sam Abbott 1, Ziggy Tate 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Sunday 31st January.

Match 3.

Worthing 10, East Invicta 6.

Scorers: Matt White 3, Nathan Hart 3, Sam Abbott 2, Joel Abbott 1, Paul Phillpott 1.

Exclusions: Rob Osborne 1, Stuart Stirling 1, Nathan Hart 1.

Match 4.

Worthing 16, Oxford 11.

Scorers: Joel Abbott 8, Matt White 4, Richard Hooper 2, Stuart Stirling 1, Nathan Hart 1.

Exclusions: Alastair Hardinge 1, Matt White 1, Paul Phillpott 1, Jon Gray 1.

Squad in Full: Ben Alcorn, Matt White, Joel Abbott, Sam Abbott, Alastair Hardinge, Paul Phillpott, Ziggy Tate, Nathan Hart, Rob Osborne, Alexander Cranford, Andy Cawdery, Jon Gray, Stuart Stirling, Richard Hooper.

Overall this was a highly satisfactory tournament when the team played some good water polo. This was the first competitive event for many members of the team since the end of the national league season at the beginning of December and it was obvious that fitness levels will need to improve in the coming weeks and months.

The second tournament takes place in Jersey in March.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

6/1/2010

Welcome to the first water polo report of 2010!

With the year only 3 days old, the 2010 water polo season commenced with the first London league junior tournaments.

Having only finished the 2009 season in mid-December this seems an incredibly early start to our competition program but we have an increasingly busy calendar.

The report is as follows:

London Winter League Junior Boys Division.

Tournament 1.

Watford Leisure Centre.

Sunday 3rd January 2009.

As already mentioned, this event was a very early start to the 2010 season and we travelled to the new deep water pool in Watford in freezing temperatures.

Having not trained for the past three weeks because of the Christmas break we knew that we might be a little lacking in match sharpness but we knew that we would be competitive.

The three individual match reports are as follows:

Match 1. Worthing 3, Beckenham 4. (H/T 2-4)

This was a disappointing result, particularly after we took an early 2 goal lead.

Unfortunately, our lack of match practice was evident and we missed lots of chances that we would normally expect to score from. We also made a number of basic defensive errors which were punished and we never quite played to our potential.

We weren't helped by some bizarre refereeing and this was to become an issue in all the games we played on the day.

Scorers: Sam Abbott 2, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Exclusions: Sam Abbott 2, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Match 2. Worthing 7, Watford 4. (H/T 3-1)

A better performance that we always controlled and it was good to see a number of the younger players make significant contributions.

We still didn't quite play to our full potential but we did score some good goals and our defending was of a much better standard.

Scorers: Sam Abbott 3, Alastair Hardinge 1, Nathan Tonkin 1, Alexander Cranford 1, Kevin Chan 1.

Exclusions: Kevin Chan 1, Nathan Tonkin 1, Alexander Cranford 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Match 3. Worthing 3, Croydon Amphibians 3. (H/T 3-1)

A terrific match which was spoilt by poor refereeing which didn't help either team but served to frustrate the players, coaches and supporters.

We played particularly well in the first half and scored 3 excellent goals as a result of good all-round team play.

In the second half Croydon came back into the match but we were very unlucky to concede a late equalizer.

The draw was probably a fair result and Sam Wildman, who is 4 years younger than this age group, made a number of excellent saves in goal.

Scorers: Alexander Cranford 2, Sam Abbott 1.

Exclusions: Alastair Hardinge 2, Alexander Cranford 1.

Squad in Full: Sam Wildman (G/K), Alastair Hardinge, Sam Wildman, Alexander Cranford, Kevin Chan, Nathan Tonkin, Peter Flynn, Olly Rainford, Charlie Jones.

Overall this was a slightly disappointing return because we really should have won the first match against Beckenham but unfortunately we didn't quite play well enough to secure the right result.

But the team improved with each match and we did play well, particularly in the first half, against a strong Croydon team.

We don't have to wait long for the second tournament in this competition. It takes place this coming Sunday (10th January) at Whitgift school in South Croydon.

Finally, the junior girls version of this competition also started on Sunday and for the first time Sussex have entered a very young team with players drawn from Worthing, Mid-Sussex Marlins and Crawley.

Worthing girls Tara Osborne, Laura Joseph and Rachel Piper (who captained the team) were part of the squad and they played 3 very competitive matches in the first of three tournaments.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

15/12/2009

This is the latest, and the final, water polo report of 2009.

We started the year on the 4th January with a junior boys tournament at Whitgift School and it's probably fitting that the competitive season has ended with another event at the same venue.

London Winter League.

Under 16 (1994 & Younger) Mixed Championship.

Tournament 2, Whitgift School, South Croydon.

Sunday 13th December.

We travelled to Whitgift school for the final time this year to play the second round of this seasons under 16 championship.

Once again we selected a very young team with only Jacques Williams, who was playing in his first competitive matches for the club, actually born in the top year of the age group.

As a result we knew that we faced 4 very tough matches but the idea is to offer a competitive level of play for all the squad that will benefit them in the long run.

The individual match reports are as follows:

1. Worthing 0, Croydon Amphibians 10. (H/T 0-6)

This was very difficult first match for the team against the best team in the competition and we struggled to come to terms with the speed and size of a well drilled opposition.

The first half was particularly difficult but we settled down in the second period and played a better standard and we created a number of chances that we should have scored from.

Scorers: None

Exclusions: Sam Wildman 1, Laura Joseph 1.

2. Worthing 1, Mid Sussex/Crawley 3. (H/T 0-1)

A much better performance when we defended with a great deal more cohesion and as a result limited the opposition to a small number of chances.

The opposition keeper was always busy and we forced him to make a number of fine saves.

Scorer: Charlie Jones 1.

Exclusions: Sam Wildman 1, Ben Goddard 1.

3. Worthing 2, Hythe 3. (H/T 0-2)

After the improvement in the previous match we were confident of doing well in the match against Hythe but unfortunately we played well below our normal standard and as a result lost a match we really should have won.

The first half was the key when we missed chance after chance as well as conceding two very poor goals defensively. It was very disappointing to lose a match we really should have been good enough to win but the lack of experience was probably what cost us the chance of recording a positive result.

Scorers: Laura Joseph 1, Ben Goddard 1.

Exclusions: None.

4. Worthing 3, Sutton & Cheam 5. (H/T 2-2)

A very exciting match where the team played much better and were unfortunate not to at least secure a draw.

We were very unlucky with two refereeing decisions that cost us goals but the team kept going well and created a number of good chances.

Charlie scored two excellent goals from 5 metre direct free throws and Laura also scored a good goal at the end of a swift counter-attack.

Scorers: Charlie Jones 2, Laura Joseph 1.

Exclusions: Olly Rainford 1.

Squad in Full: Henry Jackson, Joe Hazeldine, Ben Goddard, Laura Joseph, Tara Osborne, Sam Wildman, Olly Rainford, Charlie Jones, Jacques Williams.

Overall, the team is showing signs of improvements and the decision to play some of the younger players in this age group (Ben Goddard is 4 years younger) will undoubtedly be beneficial on the longer term.

Hopefully all the squad are learning from playing against older and in some cases better players and I am sure that the team will improve as a result of this competition.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

7/12/2009

Last weekend was probably the busiest ever for water polo at Worthing SC.

Our men's team completed the national league program at Walsall and I have already filed the report of what was an exciting climax to the end of the season.

On Saturday our ladies squad competed in the annual Basingstoke tournament and in the evening some of our youngsters played in the under 14 inter-county tournament at Whitgift School.

A full report of the Basingstoke event follows but we should congratulate Joe Hazeldine and Callum Craven who both appeared for the county team. Sam Wildman and Henry Jackson were also originally selected but unfortunately were unavailable for this particular date.

Basingstoke Ladies Tournament.

Saturday 5th December 2009.

Basingstoke Aquadrome.

We always enjoy the chance to play in this annual event at the deep water Aquadrome pool.

For this event we decided to take the opportunity of playing two of our under 16 girls for the first time in women's polo and Tara Osborne and Laura Joseph were looking forward to playing in a senior competition.

Unfortunately a number of our regular senior players were unavailable for this date for a number of reasons but we were determined to play and so two guest players from Beckenham joined us for this tournament.

The match scores are as follows:

Match 1.

Worthing 4, City of Southampton 2.

Scorers: Debby Willett 1, Anna Newell 1, Chrissy Pilcher 1, Jenny Willett 1.

Match 2.

Worthing 5, Bournemouth 5.

Jenny Willett 4, Anna Newell 1.

Match 3.

Worthing 2, Basingstoke 5.

Anna Newell 2.

Match 4.

Worthing 5, Southampton University 2.

Anna Newell 2, Chrissy Pilcher 1, Jenny Willett 1, Laura Joseph 1.

We finished as runners-up to the eventual winners from Bournemouth but all the squad thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon and the two youngsters got particularly good reviews form all the senior players. Laura scored an excellent goal and Tara played well and both will have learnt a great deal from the experience.

Squad in full: Jenny Willett, Debby Willett, Chrissy Pilcher, Anna Newell, Eimear O'Connor, Tara Osborne, Laura Joseph.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

7/12/2009

This is the final report of our debut season in the National League.

The final weekend is played on the basis of a top four play-off mini league with the team finishing top automatically promoted and the runners-up able to challenge the second bottom team in Division 3.

With results carried forward from the original league program Exeter were strong favorites for automatic promotion but if results worked in our favor we hadn't ruled out the possibility of taking the title.

To achieve this we knew that we would probably have to win all three games but were travelling with a full squad and with the longest unbeaten run in the league. We hadn't lost since the first weekend at Sheffield and we felt that tactically we had the game plan to get the results we required.

These are the individual match reports:

National League Division 4.

Play-off Weekend.

Walsall Gala Baths, 5/6 December 2009.

Match 1, Saturday 5th December, 16.40.

Worthing 13, Grantham 13.

Quarter Scores: 3-5, 4-3, 5-2, 1-3.

A pulsating game where the lead changed hands on several occasions with neither team able to take complete control.

The final result was probably all that we deserved to take from a match where we played poorly at both the start and the end. It was probably the slow start that really hurt our chances and at one point during the first quarter we actually trailed 1-5. We got back to 3-5 by the end of the period but the damage had been done and we never really rediscovered our composure.

In quarters two and three we played better and going into the final period we had a two goal advantage but we were guilty of missing other chances that might have made the game safe.

The final quarter was full of incident with Grantham scoring twice to level the match before a bizarre final minute and a half. Firstly Grantham scored again to take the lead and then we immediately called a time out to try and set a attacking plan for the last minute. Elan was then unlucky to be excluded and after Grantham had called a timeout we managed to save the shot and regain possession. We took our final time-out with 48 seconds remaining but we gave the ball away poorly and Grantham had a chance to make the game safe on the breakaway but the shot was saved. A long pass to Elan saw us score a dramatic equaliser with only 8 seconds remaining and we had stolen a point at the death.

We realised that this result wasn't really what we needed but this was our eighth game unbeaten and only the later results would tell us how much this dropped point would hurt our chances.

Scorers: Paul Phillpott 4, Richard Hooper 3, Elan Stark 3, Dominic Cranford 1, Joel Abbott 1, Sam Abbott 1.

Exclusions: Joel Abbott 2, Elan Stark 1, Sam Abbott 1.

Match 2, Sunday 6th December, 11.10.

Worthing 13, Ealing 17.

Quarter Scores: 4-4, 5-5, 1-5, 3-3.

Another tough and uncompromising match against a talented Ealing team.

Once again we never quite played our best water polo and although the match was tight, especially up to half-time, we were always missing chances and giving away the odd poor goal defensively.

Ealing are a physical team but they also feature a number of talented individuals who can influence the game if they are allowed the space to play. Unfortunately our defending was not quite up to the standard of some of the previous matches and we were guilty of allowing them too much time and space on the ball.

The match was really decided in the third quarter when we lost our shape defensively and as a result conceded a number of poor goals. We continued to miss chances at the other end and we started the final period with a four goal deficit.

The match unfortunately was held up for five minutes when one of the Ealing players suffered an injury at the start of the final quarter and this didn't help either teams concentration. We probably suffered more with the long delay giving the opposition the chance to re-group and although we never stopped trying to get back into the game we didn't quite have the energy to make things happen.

This was our first defeat after the long unbeaten run and it meant that as a result we would have to beat Exeter, who had already secured the league title, in the final match to secure the runners up position.

Scorers: Richard Hooper 5, Joel Abbott 4, Elan Stark 2, Paul Phillpott 2.

Exclusions: Paul Phillpott 3, Nathan Hart 2, Richard Hooper 1, Joel Abbott 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Match 3, Sunday 6th December, 17.00.

Worthing 15, Exeter 19.

Quarter Scores: 6-5, 3-4, 5-2, 5-4.

Going into the final match of the season we knew that we had to win to secure the runners-up position and as a result we would have the chance to play off for a place in division 3 for next season.

At the pre-match meeting we discussed at length the need to deal with the two Exeter players who lead the league top scorers table and we developed a tactical plan to specifically deal with the threat that they posed. In the main this plan worked well at at one stage in the first period we led 5-1.

As the match went on Exeter started to to create more chances and once again we began to miss at crucial moments which had been our problem in all the games.

But the team kept going and we continued to trouble the Exeter defence forcing the opposition goalkeeper to make a number of excellent saves.

Unfortunately in the second half of the match we didn't quite play well enough to force the win that we needed but all the squad kept going until the end and it was nice to see Alexander Cranford create our final goal of the season for Paul Phillpott.

The defeat meant that we finished third in the table which is an excellent effort in our debut season in national competition but all the squad were disappointed that we had come so close to a top two finish.

Scorers: Paul Phillpott 5, Joel Abbott 4, Richard Hooper 3, Elan Stark 2, Nathan Hart 1.

Exclusions: Elan Stark 2, Alastair Roberts 1, Richard Hooper 1, Joel Abbott 1, Paul Phillpott 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Squad in Full: Gregg Candy-Wallace, Andy Cawdery, Richard Hooper, Dominic Cranford, Sam Abbott, Alexander Cranford, Elan Stark, Nathan Hart, Joel Abbott, Paul Phillpott, Alastair Hardinge, Alastair Roberts.

Finally, we travelled many miles to the 5 weekend tournaments and the team was well supported by a large number of friends and family who attended every event. We are particularly proud of the money that we raised for Cancer research as part of our fundraising project that was developed to help our participation in the national league. We should also thank the number of individuals, as well as the swimming club, who made many donations that have helped fund the team throughout the season.

We plan to be back in 2010 when the experience gained in this campaign will undoubtedly be of great benefit.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

23/11/2009

This is the latest report of our debut season in the national water polo league.

Having played at Sheffield, Walsall and Marlborough we returned to the Walsall Gala baths for the final "regular season" fixtures before the final tournament play-offs.

This weekend tournament originally should have been played at Nottingham University pool two weeks ago but the event was called off on the Monday before it should have taken place. As a result of the change we have lost money for accommodation and rail fares that were non-refundable and Sam Abbott and Alexander Cranford were unavailable for the re-arranged date.

We knew that we faced 3 tough matches including a game against the early pace setters of the division, west London Ealing and these are the individual match reports:

National League Division 4

Weekend 4, Walsall Gala Baths 21/22 November 2009

Match 1, Saturday 21st November, 18.10 start.

Worthing 17, Ealing 14.

Quarter Scores: 2-3, 9-6, 2-2, 4-3.

This was a pulsating game against a talented team who are highly competitive and very physical in their approach.

We spoke at length at the pre-match meeting about the strength of the opposition are particularly the playing style that they employ and it didn't take all the squad long to realise that this was going to be a very tough game.

The first quarter was relatively even with both teams taking time to find out the relative strength of the opposition. A 3-2 deficit at the end of the period was mainly as a result of of two poor defensive errors that were punished. In attack we looked dangerous and Nathan Hart opened the scoring with an excellent shot into the top corner.

The second period was a crazy affair with 15 goals scored with both teams struggling to deal with the opposition team's attacking game. We did manage to get ahead and we ended the period with a two goal advantage but the match was far from over.

The third quarter was the pivotal period of the match and the key moment was with 1 minute and 2 seconds left in the quarter when one of the opposition players was dismissed for brutality after an off the ball incident with Joel Abbott. As a result they were punished with an immediate penalty converted by Richard Hooper and we also scored 3 more times in the period of 4 minutes that they had to play with a man short.

That made the game safe and we kept possession well in the final period while running down the clock.

This was massive win for the Worthing team after a really tough game against one of the best teams in the division.

Scorers: Richard Hooper 5, Paul Phillpott 4, Joel Abbott 3, Nathan Hart 3, Elan Stark 1, Dominic Cranford 1.

Exclusions: Joel Abbott 2, Gregg Candy-Wallace 1, Dominic Cranford 1, Paul Phillpott 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Match 2, Sunday 22nd November, 09.10 start.

Worthing 19, Bedford 7.

Quarter Scores: 6-1, 5-1, 5-3, 3-2.

The final score indicates that this was a relatively easy win against a team who struggled throughout with our attacking play and our well drilled defence.

We were always in control after a dominant first quarter but we made a number of elementary mistakes through-out the match which were hugely disappointing. We conceded a number of goals that were down to poor play both individually and collectively and against a better team we would have been punished more often.

The most disappointing aspect of the game was the dismissal of Richard Hooper for dissent mid-way through the third quarter. As a result of the new automatic sanctions he misses the final match of the weekend against Newcastle.

A win is a win, but this was a scrappy affair that we should not have been drawn into and the consequences will only be known when we play Newcastle in our final match of the weekend.

Scorers: Joel Abbott 8, Richard Hooper 3, Paul Phillpott 3, Elan Stark 3, Dominic Cranford 2.

Exclusions: Richard Hooper 3, Andy Cawdery 1, Dominic Cranford 1, Paul Phillpott 1.

Match 3, Sunday 22nd November, 16.10 start.

Worthing 13, Newcastle 9.

Quarter Scores: 3-2, 5-2, 3-2, 2-3.

The final match of the weekend was against a strong Newcastle team who feature the ex-GB international player Neil Bowers.

We were without Richard but Alexander Cranford joined our squad for this game on his way back from Sheffield where he had been competing.

Newcastle can be very awkward opponents and although their results have been mixed through-out the national league season they have the ability to play a very high standard of water polo.

We again employed our zone defence which has been successful in the past few games and and it is designed to frustrate the opposition forcing shots from distance.

The tactic worked well again and Newcastle struggled to create many chances against our disciplined defending.

The key period of the match was probably the second quarter when we increased our advantage from 3-2 to 8-4. With the squad tiring after having played the three games in two days, the second half of the match saw the team play good possession water polo to take as much time out of the game as possible.

We continued to control the match and the final score was fair reflection of the difference between the two teams.

This was another tough game and we were pleased to record our 7th win a row in the regular season.

Scorers: Elan Stark 4, Joel Abbott 4, Paul Phillpott 3, Gregg Candy-Wallace 1, Nathan Hart 1.

Exclusions: Nathan Hart 3, Elan Stark 2, Joel Abbott 1, Paul Phillpott 1.

As a result of these three victories we have finished the season with eight wins and two defeats which were both at the first weekend at Sheffield. We have finished second in the table (subject to final confirmation) and we will play in the final weekend top four play-off to decide the championship.

This is an excellent result for the squad and we return to Walsall in two weeks time for the play-off believing that we are capable of beating all of the other three teams that are involved. (Exeter, Grantham and Ealing)

Squad in full: Paul Phillpott, Andy Cawdery, Nathan Hart, Dominic Cranford, Richard Hooper, Alastair Roberts, Gregg Candy-Wallace, Elan Hart, Alastair Hardinge, Joel Abbott, Alexander Cranford (against Newcastle)

Regards,

Alastair

Match Review

9/11/2009

London Winter League 2009-2010.

Under 16 Championship (1994 + Younger)

Tournament 1, Whitgift School, Croydon.

Sunday 8th November 2009.

We decided to enter this competition with a very young team knowing that we would face some particularly difficult matches

Our team at this tournament didn't include anyone who is in the final year in this age group. (Born 1994) With all the squad at least a year younger (Ben Goddard is actually 4 years younger born in 1998), we knew that we would be facing older, and more experienced teams from around the south-east.

The individual match reports are as follows:

1.Worthing 0, Sutton & Cheam 7. (H/T 0-3)

A tough match against a talented team who were physically stronger than our young squad.

We did play some good water polo at times and we did force the opposition goalkeeper to make a number of good saves.

Scorers: None

Exclusions: Charlie Jones 2, Sam Wildman 2.

2. Worthing 0, Hythe 5. (H/T 0-4)

A slightly disappointing first half when we struggled to come to terms with the opposition but in the second period we showed much greater application and we were unlucky not to score on several occasions.

Scorers: None

Exclusions: None

3. Worthing 2, Mid Sussex 8. (H/T 1-6)

The first half of this match was probably our poorest period of play during the four matches and we defended naively at times.
During the second period we produced a much better display and we created many chances,especially when we turned over possession.

The two goals scored were fair reward but our first-half display had left us too much to do.

Scorers: Joe Hazeldine 1, Sam Wildman 1.

Exclusions: Joe Hazeldine 2, Sam Wildman 2.

4. Worthing 0, Croydon Amphibians 6. (H/T 0-2)

An excellent first half performance when again we missed several good chances.

The second-half saw the team start to tire but we kept going to the end.

Scorers: None

Exclusions: Ben Goddard 1.

Squad in Full: Oliver Rainford, Henry Jackson, Laura Joseph, Tara Osborne, Karen Chan, Joe Hazeldine, Sam Wildman, Ben Goddard, Charlie Jones.

This was a really tough event for the squad but I hope that they will all have learnt a great deal from playing against some of the high quality and more experienced players in the opposition teams.

We actually did play some good water polo at times and the squad will benefit from this type of tough competition in the longer term.

Regards,

Alastair Roberts.

Match Review

25/10/2009

Men's National League Division 4.

Weekend 3, Marlborough School.

Sunday 25th October 2009.

Worthing 15, Grantham 10. (Quarter Scores: 5-1, 4-4, 4-3, 2-2)

The latest match in our debut season in the national league always looked to be a demanding fixture against a much improved Grantham team.

The fixture computer had strangely only allocated us one match for the weekend and so we faced a 220 mile round trip to the excellent deep water pool at Marlborough school for this important encounter.

We were pleased to travel with a squad of 11 for this match with the addition of debutants Andy Cawdery and Alexander Cranford who became the youngest player to represent us in the national league.

The match was always going to be hard-fought affair and this proved to be the case. We did make an excellent start and in the first quarter our zonal defence was again hugely influential in frustrating the opposition.

We scored a number of excellent goals during the match and we always posed Grantham problems either from the centre-forward position or with our longer range shooting. Richard scored with 1 second left of the third period with a fierce shot from distance into the far corner and this was probably the key moment in ending Grantham's resistance. This made the match score 13-8 and during the final period we played our possessions to run down the clock and secure another fine win.

Once again our defensive play was of a high standard and we continued our excellent record by conceding only 2 exclusion fouls in this match.

Scorers: Richard Hooper 4, Paul Phillpott 4, Joel Abbott 3, Elan Stark 2, Sam Abbott 1, Andy Cawdery 1.

Exclusions: Richard Hooper 2.

Squad in Full: Gregg Candy-Wallace, Andy Cawdery, Richard Hooper, Alexander Cranford, Sam Abbott, Elan Stark, Nathan Hart, Joel Abbott, Paul Philpott, Alastair Hardinge, Alastair Roberts.

This was another good win but all the squad realized that we probably hadn't played quite as well as at the previous weekend at Walsall when we won all three matches. But the win was definitely fair reward and we will go the final regular season tournament at Nottingham University knowing that we still have a good chance of being involved in the final four play-off.

At Nottingham we will play a full 3 match program against Newcastle, Bedford and Ealing which will be demanding series of games.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

17/10/2009

Sussex Senior League.

Wednesday 14th October.

Worthing 20, Hastings 11. (Quarter scores: 6-3, 3-3, 3-2, 8-3)

This was a straightforward win against a Hastings senior team that was strengthened by the appearance of current GB senior international player, Jack Waller.

The Worthing team was always in control and a dominant final quarter saw the final score give a fair reflection of the difference between the teams.

Our zonal defence made it very difficult for Jack Waller to create many chances and we coped well with his obvious attacking threat restricting him to 4 goals.

The Worthing attack was led by Paul Phillpott, who after the success of the previous weekend in the national league fixtures at Walsall continued his good form with a 10 goal haul.

Scorers: Paul Phillpott 10, Ziggy Tate 4, Richard Hooper 3, Jon Gray 1, Sam Abbott 1, Dominic Cranford 1.

Exclusions: Jon Gray 1, Dominic Cranford 1.

Squad in full: Alexander Cranford, Ziggy Tate, Jon Gray, Richard Hooper, Rob Osborne, Sam Abbott, Dominic Cranford, Andy Cawdery, Tony Gray, Nathan Hart, Paul Phillpott.

The next senior match is in the national league (division 4) when we play Grantham at the Marlborough school pool on Sunday 25th October.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

11/10/2009

This is the report of the second weekend of Worthing's debut season in Division 4 of the men's national league.

Having played 3 exciting matches at the first tournament in September at Ponds Forge in Sheffield winning 1 match with 2 close defeats, we were very much looking forward to this event.

The individual match reports are as follows:

National League Division 4, Tournament 2.

Walsall Gala Baths

Match 1.

Saturday October 10th, 12.00.

Worthing 29, RAF 7. (Quarter Scores: 6-3, 8-1, 8-2, 7-1)

A satisfactory win against an enthusiastic but technically limited RAF team who made a spirited start to this match but soon struggled against our well drilled team play.

The first quarter saw the Worthing team take time to get into the match and we conceded 3 goals that really should have been avoided. We soon worked out the best tactics for this opposition and we dominated the final 3 quarters of the match.

Our zonal defence was the key factor in the teams success, and the RAF always struggled to create many opportunities once we got ourselves organized.

In attack we always posed problems for the opposition and we scored goals both from the centre forward position as well as with shots from distance.

Overall this was a satisfactory win, but the team realized that the second match of the day against Cambridge would probably be a much tougher affair.

Scorers: Paul Phillpott 9, Richard Hooper 7, Joel Abbott 5, Sam Abbott 3, Nathan Hart 2, Elan Stark 2, Gregg Candy-Wallace 1.

Exclusions: Joel Abbott 2, Nathan Hart 1.

Match 2.

Saturday October 10th, 17.50.

Worthing 14, Cambridge 10. (Quarter Scores: 2-3, 6-3, 2-0, 4-4)

This was an excellent match against a talented Cambridge team who had been unbeaten at the first weekend.

At the pre-match meeting we discussed in detail a defensive plan that was designed to frustrate and limit the oppositions scoring opportunities and it was pleasing that for long periods our tactics were successful.

The first quarter was a close affair with both teams finding out the relative strengths of the opposition and we were a little unlucky to finish the period a goal down. The second quarter was the key period in the match and we scored some excellent goals to take control of the match. Joel scored 2 excellent goals from the centre forward position but the team looked well organized and always dangerous when in possession.

The third period saw the team continue to dominate proceedings and into the final quarter we maintained possession for long periods while running down the remaining playing time.

Overall, an excellent win built on a fine defensive display which was highlighted by only conceding 2 exclusion fouls.

Scorers: Joel Abbott 4, Paul Phillpott 4, Richard Hooper 4, Elan Stark 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Exclusions: Paul Phillpott 2.

Match 3.

Sunday October 11th, 11.10

Worthing 20, Otter 1869 4. (Quarter Scores: 4-1, 6-1, 4-1, 6-1)

This was by far our best performance so far in the National league and we dominated a team whose previous results indicated that we would be in for a tough encounter.

Playing again with a highly technical zone defence, we completely disrupted Otter's attacking game and limited them to mainly speculative shots from distance.

In attack we played some excellent water polo and we scored goals from all areas but Paul Phillpott and Joel Abbott were particularly productive alternating in the centre forward position.

Our defensive game plan worked so well that we almost went for half the match without conceding a goal. Only a defensive slip with 7 seconds remaining gifted Otter a very late consolation goal but overall we had played an excellent game.

Our overall dominance was also highlighted by the exclusion count with Otter committing 11 offences while we only conceded 3.

Scorers: Joel Abbott 5, Paul Phillpott 5, Elan Stark 4, Richard Hooper 2, Nathan Hart 2, Sam Abbott 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Exclusions: Richard Hooper 2, Joel Abbott 1.

Two national league weekends played and I think all the squad and the many supporters now feel that we are becoming established as a team to be taken seriously. All the squad work hard for each other and the tactics that we employed so successfully for most of the weekend rely on a huge amount of teamwork. We know that we still need to improve but we have made progress since the first weekend and I am sure that the team will be even more competitive at the future weekends.

Finally, all the squad and our supporters are thoroughly enjoying the national league experience. We had an excellent evening out together on the Saturday evening and and we are grateful for all the support and encouragement that the club, along with a number of individuals have given us to make our participation possible.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

4/10/2009

Sussex County Senior League.

Wednesday 30th September 2009

Crawley 12, Worthing 17.

Quarter Scores: 5-5, 0-5, 2-2, 5-5.

This was a workmanlike win against a much improved Crawley team in a match played at the excellent all deep K2 facility.

With Crawley now able to include a number of talented players this was always going to be a difficult match but the Worthing team always had the game under control.

After a level first quarter we took control in the second period and Crawley never looked likely to overhaul our advantage in the second half of the game.

All the squad of 12 played well and we scored a number of good quality goals. Defensively we weren't quite as effective as we normally are but we still frustrated the opposition for long periods.

Scorers: Paul Phillpott 8, Richard Hooper 5, Ziggy Tate 2, Sam Abbott 1, Dominic Cranford 1.

Exclusions: Dominic Cranford 2, Andy Cawdery 1, Paul Phillpott 1.

Remaining squad: Jon Gray, Tony Gray, Rob Osborne, Adrian Irbe, Alexander Cranford, Alastair Roberts.

Regards,

Alastair

Match Review

21/9/2009

Sussex County Senior League.

Wednesday 16th September 2009

Worthing 13, Brighton 7. (Quarter Scores: 2-0, 4-3, 3-1, 4-3)

This was a satisfactory win against a much improved Brighton senior team who are well organized defensively and they always made it difficult for us to play our normal attacking game.

We did, however, manage to play a good standard of water polo at times and we were worthy winners at the end.

All of the squad enjoyed a good amount of water time and first choice goal-keeper enjoyed his 4th quarter foray as an outfield player. He managed to score a goal and get himself excluded during his short cameo appearance!

Scorers: Richard Hooper 4, Paul Phillpott 3, Nathan Hart 2, Alastair Hardinge 2, Tim Brazier 1, Ben Alcorn 1.

Exclusions: Ben Alcorn 1, Sam Abbott 1, Dominic Cranford 1.

Squad in full: Ben Alcorn, Jon Gray, Richard Hooper, Rob Osborne, Sam Abbott, Dominic Cranford, Tim Brazier, Nathan Hart, Paul Phillpott & Alastair Hardinge.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

20/9/2009

This is a report of the latest London league event.

Sunday 13th September.

London League Under 15 Competition (Boys and girls born 1995 + younger)

Whitgift School, South Croydon.

Our young team traveled to the final tournament at the deep water pool at Whitgift school knowing that they faced two tough matches.

The reports are as follows:

Match 1.

Worthing 10, Sevenoaks 1.

This was a good win against an inexperienced opposition who struggled to deal with our attacking play.

We dominated throughout and scored a number of good goals with 5 of our squad finding the back of the net.

Scorers: Olly Rainford 3, Ben Goddard 3, Joe Hazeldine 2, Laura Joseph 1, Karen Chan 1.

Exclusions: None.

Match 2.

Worthing 3, Hythe 4.

This was an exciting match to finish our program in this summers championship and with a little more luck we could have won.

The lead changed hands on several occasions and we played our part in an exciting match that we were a little unfortunate not to take something from.

Scorers: Joe Hazeldine 1, Laura Joseph 1, Olly Rainford 1.

Exclusion: Karen Chan 1.

Squad in full: Sam Wildman, Henry Jackson, Callum Craven, Olly Rainford, Laura Joseph, Tara Osborne, Karen Chan, Joe Hazeldine & Ben Goddard,

This was a satisfactory end to our participation in this championship and all the squad continue to improve as a result of playing more competitive matches.

We hope that the team will continue to make progress when the Winter league program commences later in the year.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

15/9/2009

This is the report of the third match played at our historic first weekend in the national league.

National League Division 4.

Ponds Forge, Sheffield. 13th September 2009. 17.15 Start.

Worthing 11, Carlisle 14. (Quarter scores, 2-3, 2-5, 2-4, 5-2)

A slightly disappointing end to the weekend saw a tired performance from the Worthing team which resulted in another close defeat.

Carlisle are a strong team who combine a number of talented junior players along with some senior players who have gained experience with Lancaster who are currently the National League 1st division champions.

We knew that this would be a difficult match but we still felt that if we played to our full potential we would have a reasonable chance of a victory.

Unfortunately we never quite found the level of performance that we needed and we again missed too many chances that we would normally hope to score from. That said, the Carlisle goalkeeper produced a number of outstanding saves, often at key moments in the match.

Defensively we gave away a number of goals that we would not normally expect to concede but we improved when we changed from a zone to a man for man "press."

Scorers: Richard Hooper 7, Paul Phillpott 2, Nathan Hart 1, Joel Abbott 1.

Exclusions: Sam Abbott 1, Nathan Hart 1, Joel Abbott 1, Paul Phillpott 1.

Squad in full: Gregg Candy-Wallace, Richard Hooper, Sam Abbott, Dominic Cranford, Nathan Hart, Joel Abbott, Paul Phillpott, Alastair Hardinge, Alastair Roberts.

Coach: Ben Alcorn.

Overall this was an exciting first weekend when we could possibly have won, lost or drawn all 3 matches. We have proved that we are competitive at this level but we will need to improve in various areas of play if we are to win more matches.

We were very pleased with how well the squad behaved both in and out of the water and we were pleased that so many friends and family made the long journey north to support the team.

We are already looking forward to the next tournament which is at Walsall on the weekend of 10/11th October. We again face a busy three match program with fixtures against The RAF, City of Cambridge and London based Otter 1869.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

14/9/2009

Hi to you all from Pond's Forge, Sheffield.

This is the first ever report of our participation in the UK men's national water polo league.

Having made the decision to enter at the start of the year, we were pleased to see that the first venue we would play our division 4 fixtures at was the outstanding venue within the UK.

Ponds Forge is a fantastic complex with the 50 metre deep water pool the outstanding attraction.

At the first weekend the draw gave us fixtures against the other two new teams in the league (Carlisle and Exeter) as well as the Manchester second team that includes mainly talented junior players.

The results (so far) are as follows:

Saturday 12th September, 16.15 Start.

Worthing 14, Exeter 17 (Quarter Scores 1-2, 2-5, 5-5, 6-5)

A highly entertaining and exciting debut match that saw our inexperienced team play some good water polo before eventually losing out to a quality opposition.

Exeter include a number of players who have played at this level for several years and our defensive tactics frustrated them for long periods of the match.

If anything, it was our inability to take several of the clear opportunities that we created that probably cost us the chance of a victory.

We were always competitive and the team could be proud to have put on such a good display against one of the obvious favorites for the divisional title.

For the record, Richard Hooper became the first player to score for Worthing in the national league with a well taken goal after 6 minutes 48 seconds of the first period. Unfortunately, by then we had already missed several chances that probably highlighted the reason we eventually lost this match.

Ultimately, a match that highlighted the reasons that we took the decision to play in this competition. Outstanding facilities, first class refereeing and "proper" table officiating.

Scorers: Paul Phillpott 6, Richard Hooper 4, Sam Abbott 2, Nathan Hart 1, Joel Abbott 1 (penalty).

Exclusions: Nathan Hart 3, Paul Phillpott 2, Gregg Candy-Wallace 1, Richard Hooper 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Sunday 13th September, 11.00 Start.

Worthing 13, Manchester Hawks 11. (Quarter Scores 6-3, 0-3, 3-3, 4-2)

Our first win was secured with a less than satisfactory performance against a young but talented opposition.

Once again we were unable to take many of the chances that we created and a poor defensive display in the second quarter was particularly disappointing.

We started the final period with a comfortable 2 goal advantage but two poor pieces of defending saw the opposition draw level with 2 minutes 30 left in the game.

Fortunately we scored twice quickly to secure the win but all the team realized that we would need to play better in the final match of the weekend against Carlisle.

Scorers: Richard Hooper 3, Paul Phillpott 3, Sam Abbott 2, Dominic Cranford 2, Nathan Hart 2, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Exclusions: Joel Abbott 3, Richard Hooper 1, Sam Abbott 1, Dominic Cranford 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Squad in full: Gregg Candy-Wallace, Richard Hooper, Sam Abbott, Dominic Cranford, Nathan Hart, Joel Abbott, Paul Phillpott, Alastair Hardinge, Alastair Roberts.

Coach: Ben Alcorn.

I will forward the report of the final match of the weekend tomorrow.

Regards,

Alastair.

* Water Polo - sponsored 'Channel' Swim Report *

posted on 6 September 2009

Junior Boys Inter-Regional Championships 2009.

Walsall Gala Baths, 5/6 September.

After a break of a few years the ASA decided to re-introduce an inter-regional championship for the junior age group (boys born 1991 and younger).

The Worthing junior team has dominated competitions within London and the south-east at this age group for the past few years and 7 of our players were selected in a squad of 12 that represented the region.

Congratulations should go to Sam Abbott, Joel Abbott, Dominic Cranford, Alastair Hardinge, Scott Martin, Robert Osborne and Ziggy Tate who all played a significant part in an exciting tournament.

The south-east eventually finished as runners-up to a very strong north-west team but they played some excellent water polo through-out.

On the Saturday the team started with a satisfactory win against the east-midlands before losing by the narrowest of margins to Scotland.

Sunday saw the team play well against the north-west but missing too many chances cost them the chance of victory. In the final match the boys managed to turn the tables on Scots to win by a single goal margin which secured the runners-up position.

Joel Abbott was joint top goal scorer in the competition which is a remarkable achievement for a player who has only just started concentrating on playing outfield rather than his original position in goal.

To finish as runners-up in this competition is a good result for the region and the selection of 7 Worthing players is a remarkable achievement for the club.

The team was coached by Paul Phillpott, also of Worthing SC, who worked hard with the squad at various sessions in the build up to the competition.

If you should require any further information please feel free to contact me.

Regards,

Alastair Roberts.

07770 916721 (M)

* Water Polo - sponsored 'Channel' Swim Report *

posted on 18 July 2009

Wednesday 15th July.

Aquarena, Worthing.

Worthing Water Polo held a sponsored 'channel' swim to raise funds for their National League inaugural year and for Cancer Research UK. Please click here for details. Click here for Photos.

Match Review

11/7/2009

The busy year for the water polo teams has continued this week with two senior fixtures.

Tuesday 7th July.

Senior Friendly Match.

HMS Temerera, Portsmouth.

Royal Navy 5, Worthing 16. (Quarter scores: 1-4, 1-6, 1-2, 2-4)

Having played on the Sunday in the Army tournament at Aldershot, we continued our busy period with a match against the Royal Navy in Portsmouth.

Both services are working towards the inter-services Championship which is being played this weekend and we are always happy to help with both teams build up to this competition.

The match with the Navy was an excellent encounter and we played some good quality water polo in securing the victory.

Strong defending was the basis of the win and we always looked dangerous in attack. Paul Phillpott had a fine game playing at centre forward scoring 7 goals but the team played well to create the chances.

Overall we were pleased with the performance which again indicated the high standard of water polo that this squad is capable of producing.

Scorers: Paul Phillpott 7, Scott Martin 3, Stuart Stirling 2, Sam Abbott 2, Jon Gray 1, Ziggy Tate 1.

Exclusions: Stuart Stirling 2, Scott Martin 1, Ben Alcorn 1.

Squad in Full: Ben Alcorn (G/K), Jon Gray, Alastair Hardinge, Andy Cawdery, Tim Brazier, Sam Abbott, Adrian Irbe, Scott Martin, Ziggy Tate, Stuart Stirling, Paul Phillpott, Nathan Hart.

Thursday 9th July.

Sussex Senior League.

Summerfield's Pool, Hastings.

Hastings 2, Worthing 15. (Quarter scores: 1-3, 0-2, 1-7, 0-3)

Two days after the trip to Portsmouth we made the long journey east for the annual encounter with Hastings.

As always, the match was played in the shallow, narrow and dimly lit Summerfield's pool which is not exactly ideal for water polo.

We coped well in the circumstances and occasionally managed to put together some moves of real quality. Paul Phillpott and Richard Hooper shared the centre forward role and caused the opposition all sorts of problems.

The goals were shared between 7 of our squad of 9 and it was nice to see Adrian Irbe score twice and regular goal-keeper Ben Alcorn also on the score sheet.

Scorers: Richard Hooper 5, Paul Phillpott 3, Adrian Irbe 2, Sam Abbott 2, Ben Alcorn 1, Tim Brazier 1, Nathan Hart 1.

Exclusions: Alastair Hardinge 1.

Squad in Full: Ben Alcorn, Paul Phillpott, Andy Cawdery, Richard Hooper, Tim Brazier, Alastair Hardinge, Adrian Irbe, Sam Abbott, Nathan Hart.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

5/7/2009

A very busy week for the various water polo teams.

Reports as follows:

1.Senior Friendly Match.

Wednesday 1st July.

Sevenoaks 5, Worthing 12.

This was a satisfactory win for our senior team at Kent league side Sevenoaks.

We played well and controlled the game throughout and the final score was a fair reflection of the teams dominance.

Scorers: Richard Hooper 6, Sam Abbott 4, Ben Alcorn 1, Dominic Cranford 1.

Exclusions: None.

Squad in Full: As Above + Jon Gray, Andy Cawdrey, Rob Osborne, Tony Gray, Paul Phillpott.

2. British Army Senior Tournament.

Aldershot, Sunday 5th July.

We travelled to the excellent 50 metre pool at Aldershot for the annual tournament to defend the title that we had won 12 months ago.

We were pleased to take a full squad of 13 to this event to play 2 full 4 quarter matches in a full size deep water pool.

Match 1, Worthing 17, British Army 6

Quarter Scores: 4-1, 5-2, 4-0, 4-3.

This match was a competitive affair against an Army team who are currently missing a number of players who are deployed in Afghanistan.

We played some good water polo but our man-up opportunities were poorly executed and we missed a number of chances that we probably should have scored from.

All of the squad enjoyed a good amount of water time and Alastair Hardinge was unlucky to be excluded in the third quarter.

Scorers: Scott Martin 6, Ziggy Tate 4, Joel Abbott 2, Richard Hooper 2, Sam Abbott 1, Stuart Stirling 1, Matt White 1.

Exclusions: Alastair Hardinge 3, Tony Gray 1, Rob Osborne 1, Scott Martin 1.

Match 2, Worthing 14, Swindon 11.

Quarter Scores: 3-2, 2-2, 3-3, 6-4.

An exciting match against a well organized and strong opposition who will play in Division 3 of the National League later this year.

We always led but Swindon did draw level at the start of the 4th Quarter. A couple of quick goals, including a rare backhand shot by Stuart Stirling from the centre forward position, settled the nerves.

At times we again played some good water polo but as in the previous match our extra man plays were poor.

That said, we did enough to win what was a very hard fought victory which secured the overall title.

Scorers: Matt White 6, Scott Martin 3, Ziggy Tate 2, Richard Hooper 2, Stuart Stirling 1.

Exclusions: Andy Cawdery 2, Adrian Irbe 2, Tony Gray 1, Joel Abbott 1, Alastair Hardinge 1.

Squad in Full at the Army: Ben Alcorn (G/K), Ziggy Tate, Scott Martin, Stuart Stirling, Joel Abbott, Sam Abbott, Richard Hooper, Tony Gray, Adrian Irbe, Matt White, Andy Cawdery, Rob Osborne, Alastair Hardinge.

3. London Junior League (1991 + Younger)

Play-off Final, Whitgift School, South Croydon.

Sunday 5th July.

Worthing 23, Croydon Amphibians 8.

Quarter Scores: 4-1, 4-1, 8-4, 7-2.

The final of this years Junior London league looked like being a tough affair against our long time rivals in their home pool. Add to this that 6 of our squad of 10 had already played earlier in the day at Aldershot in the Army tournament and we were expecting a tough battle to win the title.

An outstanding first quarter saw the team take control and after this period we were always in command.

Croydon didn't help themselves with one of their best players being excluded before the end of the first quarter and as a result we were able to dictate the play for long periods.

Our attacking play always caused the opposition problems and we scored a number of fine goals.

The win secured the London Junior league for the second year running and this event is really the unofficial Championship for teams from all parts of London and the South-east. The club should be very proud of this group of boys who have worked hard and developed together over the past few years and have become a formidable team.

Scorers: Scott Martin 9, Joel Abbott 5, Sam Abbott 4, Stuart Stirling 2, Tim Brazier 1, Kevin Chan 1, Dominic Cranford 1.

Exclusions: Alastair Hardinge 2, Rob Osborne 1.

Squad in Full: Alexander Cranford (G/K), Scott Martin, Joel Abbott, Sam Abbott, Alastair Hardinge, Dominic Cranford, Stuart Stirling, Rob Osborne, Kevin Chan, Tim Brazier.

The season continues this coming week with a fixture away at the Royal Navy in Portsmouth and a county league game at Hastings.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

29/6/2009

We have played 2 Sussex Senior League fixtures in the past week as follows:

Wednesday 24th June.

Worthing 18, Crawley 4. (Quarter Scores: 7-0, 5-2, 3-1, 3-1)

This was a comprehensive win against an improving Crawley team who were unfortunately missing a couple of their influential players.

The Worthing team made a particularly strong start in the first period and this has not always been the case in recent matches. Leading 7-0 at the first break really ended the game as a contest but Crawley kept going and never made it easy for us.

Our all-round play was of good quality and we defended particularly well employing a zone defence to frustrate the opposition for long periods. The few chances that they created were dealt with by goal-keeper Ben Alcorn and on several occasions his passing led to quick counter-attacks.

Overall this was a satisfactory win and our mixture of youth and experience with 8 junior players in the squad of 13 proved far too strong for Crawley.

Scorers: Richard Hooper 4, Scott Martin 3, Ziggy Tate 3, Paul Phillpott 3, Sam Abbott 2, Alexander Cranford 1, Nathan Hart 1, Ben Alcorn 1.

Exclusions: Andy Cawdrey 1, Dominic Cranford 1, Ziggy Tate 1.

Remaining Squad Members: Jon Gray, Rob Osborne, Stuart Stirling.

Friday 26th June.

Brighton 5, Worthing 14. (Quarter Scores: 3-2, 5-0, 3-1, 3-2)

The second win of the week was secured against a much improved Brighton team at the Prince Regent pool.

This is not an easy venue to play at being much smaller and most significantly more shallow than our home pool. This makes for a more physical match but we coped well and played some good water polo on the way to securing the victory.

Having taken a quick 2 goal lead, we contrived to give away 2 goals but this was the last time the match was level. The second quarter saw a particularly dominant display and with a 8-2 lead at half-time we could afford to relax and play out the remainder of the game.

Scorers: Richard Hooper 5, Paul Phillpott 5, Scott Martin 2, Ziggy Tate 2.

Exclusions: Anthony Gray 3, Scott Martin 1, Andy Cawdrey, Stuart Stirling 1, Paul Phillpott 1.

Remaining Squad Members: Rob Osborne, Sam Abbott, Dominic Cranford, Alexander Cranford, Nathan Hart, Ben Alcorn.

This was a satisfactory week for our senior team who will be busy again this coming week with fixtures away at Sevenoaks and the annual tournament at the Army in Aldershot on Sunday.

Regards,

Alastair.

* Water Polo - sponsored 'Channel' swim *

posted on 25 June 2009

Worthing Water Polo are holding a sponsored 'channel' swim to raise funds for their National League inaugural year and for Cancer Research UK. Please click here for flyer.

Match Review

21/6/2009

London League Under 15 (Mixed) Championship.

Tournament 3.

Whitgift School, South Croydon.

Sunday 21st June 2009.

We travelled to the third event of this summers championship having played really well at the last event when our young team had begun to show a great deal of improvement.

We were due to play 3 matches at this tournament but the late withdrawal of West London Penguin meant that we had to play 2 longer games against Sevenoaks and Watford.

These are the individual reports:

Match 1.

Worthing 14, Sevenoaks 0. (H/T 8-0)

This was a fine performance against a young but spirited opposition who always made things difficult for us.

The Worthing youngsters once again showed that they are beginning to progress both individually and collectively and it was pleasing to see that the passing and game awareness are now of a much higher standard.

The team defended well and the opposition only created a small number of chances.

It was the speed of our counter attacking that was the real difference between the teams and we scored a number of goals as a result of quickly turning defence into attack.

Scorers: Karen Chan 4, Laura Joseph 4, Ben Goddard 2, Joe Hazeldine 2, Charlie Jones 1, Olly Rainford 1.

Exclusion: Charlie Jones.

Match 2.

Worthing 1, Watford 6. (H/T 1-0)

A really strange match that saw us dominate the start of the game taking the lead through an excellent finish from Laura. We missed several other chances as we continued to dominate proceedings in the first half and perhaps this was the turning point of the game.

In the second half we started to make too many basic errors and we were particularly guilty in giving away possession too easily on many occasions.

The poor second period might have been explained by an element of tiredness creeping in but the final score really does not give a real indication of the closeness of the match.

Although we were disappointed with the final result the team had played well in the first half and can take a great deal of satisfaction for how they competed against an older and more physical opposition.

Scorer: Laura Joseph

Exclusion: Joe Hazeldine.

Squad in Full: Sam Wildman, Laura Joseph, Karen Chan, Tara Osborne, Joe Hazeldine, Olly Rainford, Henry Jackson, Ben Goddard, Callum Craven, Charlie Jones.

Overall, this was an encouraging event for our development squad who are beginning to make good progress.

The team continues to improve and we are looking forward to the final event which is due to be played on September 13th.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

13/6/2009

Ladies London League. Division 2.

Tournament 3, Whitgift School, Croydon.

Sunday 7th June 2009.

The final tournament of the 2009 Ladies London League took us back to the excellent deep water pool at Whitgift school in Croydon.

The event had the making of an exciting affair with our new combined Worthing/Basingstoke team level on points at the top of table with Beckenham ladies.

As a result the key fixture looked to be the first match of the days program with the winner looking likely to take the overall title.

Unfortunately our squad was missing Chrissy Pilcher who was unavailable because of illness and Becky Anderson who was away at Loughborough University studying for exams.

These are the individual match reports.

Match 1. Worthing/Basingstoke 7, Beckenham 1. (H/T 2-1)

A match that will be remembered unfortunately for the idiosyncratic officiating which spoilt what should have been an exciting encounter.

Our girls were worthy winners and were always in control but the final score did not reflect the closeness of the match. Certain key decisions went our way and we scored a number of goals as a result.

Our defending was always of a high quality and because of this we always looked the more likely team to win the match.

Scorers: Jenny Willett 3, Mel Hart 3, Kelli Bird 1.

Exclusions: Emily Griffiths 1, Stacy Darbyshire 1.

Match 2. Worthing/Basingstoke 10, Oxford 1. (H/T 3-0)

A satisfactory win for the team when swimming speed and fitness were the key.

A number of our goals were scored as a result of simple turnovers and the opposition had no answer to our counter-attacking.

Defensively we played well again and goalkeeper Kayley Alcorn dealt well with a small number of speculative shots.

Scorers: Hannah Chilton 4, Mel Hart 3, Jenny Willett 2, Kelli Bird 1.

Exclusions: Emily Griffiths 2, Hannah Chilton 1.

Match 3. Worthing/Basingstoke 7, Penguin III 5. (H/T 3-2)

The final score indicates a close result but we were always in control of this match against a physical opposition.

Once again it was the speed of our counter-attacking that did the damage and Penguin constantly struggled to deal with this aspect of our play.

Both teams looked tired playing their 3rd game of the day and this probably explains the high number of exclusions committed.

Scorers: Jenny Willett 4, Mel Hart 2, Hannah Chilton 1.

Exclusions: Emily Griffiths 3, Claire Liggins 1, Amy Stringer 1, Mel Hart 1, Kelli Bird 1.

Squad in Full: Kayley Alcorn (G/K), Jenny Willett, Emily Griffiths, Claire Liggins, Stacy Darbyshire, Hannah Chilton, Amy Stringer, Mel Hart, Kelli Bird.

The 3 wins secured the Division 2 title and Jenny Willett was presented with the trophy after the final match.

This was an excellent result for this new combined team at it was particularly good to see how well the girls form both clubs worked together.

The girls were delighted with the win and I hope that we will defend this title in next years competition.

Regards,

Alastair.

Match Review

6/6/2009

Sussex Senior Knock-out.

Wednesday 3rd June 2009

Worthing 13, Brighton 5 (+ 6 Handicap) 11 . (Quarter Scores: 2-3, 2-0, 4-2, 5-0)

This was an exciting match against a much improved and spirited Brighton team who played their part in an entertaining fixture.

With a handicap of 6 goals to overcome this always looked to be a difficult fixture and this certainly proved to be the case.

We made a slow start failing to employ the desired tactics and as a result at the end of the first period we trailed 2-3 which was an overall deficit of 2-9.

From this point our play began to improve but we were still guilty of missing far too many simple opportunities which kept score closer than it might have been.

Going into the final period we still trailed 5-8 but a strong finish saw us take a 2 goal lead with just over 2 minutes left to play. As a result we ran the clock down successfully to record a narrow victory.

Ben Alcorn had a fine game in goal including a spectacular penalty save and it was pleasing to see that our squad of 12 included 6 junior players.

The team realized that they had under-performed but credit must go to Brighton who played well for long periods of the match.

Scorers: Richard Hooper 4, Paul Phillpott 4, Scott Martin 3, Nathan Hart 1.

Exclusions: Paul Phillpott 2, Richard Hooper 1, Sam Abbott 1, Dominic Cranford 1, Stuart Stirling 1.

Squad in Full: Ben Alcorn (G/K), Jon Gray, Anthony Gray, Richard Hooper, Rob Osborne, Sam Abbott, Dominic Cranford, Scott Martin, Stuart Stirling, Alexander Cranford, Paul Phillpott & Nathan Hart.

Kind regards,

Alastair.

Water Polo Archive

2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006 - 2005 - 2004

Alastair Roberts
Water Polo Secretary

Water Polo

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Inter-county Water Polo Tournament

National League Fixtures 2010

2010 South East Region Championship Photo

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Fixtures 2010

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*** Water Polo - sponsored 'Channel' Swim Report ***

posted on 6 September 2009

*** Water Polo - sponsored 'Channel' Swim Report ***

posted on 18 July 2009

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*** Water Polo - sponsored 'Channel' swim ***

posted on 25 June 2009

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Water Polo Archive

* Water Polo - sponsored 'Channel' Swim Report *

* Water Polo - sponsored 'Channel' Swim Report *

* Water Polo - sponsored 'Channel' swim *