Yes, the stock of our players has risen to such an extent in recent months that Lancaster’s Scott Carpenter and Rob Parker, of Cheltenham, will be heading for Catalonia in August.

Both will still turn out for GB in European qualifying games and in the Commonwealth Games in October, but Terrassa will be the new focus for their club polo until June of next year. In particular, both look forward to competing in Spanish colours in the Euro League.

Scott and Rob began the countdown to London 2012 by playing in Australia earlier this year. The goal-scoring feats of Scott helped Victoria Tigers clinch a first national title in 18 years. Rob impressed with the University of New South Wales Magpies.

Rob  is already familiar with the high quality of his new team-mates, having played for Cheltenham when they were on the wrong end of a 20-goal hammering by Terrassa.

“I was a bit younger at the time and was just amazed at the standard of the players. They absolutely thrashed us – I never thought I would be playing with them, so to have got a contract is amazing.”

Rob believes that GB men are making great strides. “There is obviously a long time between now and London but with a lot of the players now playing in Europe – plus the good results we had last year – I am feeling really confident about the Games.”

Scott and Rob are good mates – and will be helping each other learn the Spanish language!

Said Scott: “I’m really excited at the prospect of testing myself against the best players in the world. It is a fabulous opportunity for British players to show what we can do on the European stage.”

Both players acknowledge the benefits of UK National League experience from a young age. In 2006, Scott became the first player in the NWPL top division to score 100 goals in a season, repeating the feat the following year. Back in 1986, his father, George, was the first player in any NWPL division to amass a ton of goals in one campaign – for Durham.

• Sunday 25 July – all swimmers 4.00-5.30pm (Water Polo 5.00pm – 6.00pm) 
• Sunday 1 august – all swimmers 4.00 – 5.30pm (Water Polo 5.00pm – 6.00pm)
• Friday 6 august – no training
• Sunday 8 august – all swimmers 4.00 – 5.30pm (Water Polo 5.00pm – 6.00pm)
• Friday 13 august – all swimmers 8.00 – 9.15pm
• Sunday 15 august – all swimmers 4.00 – 5.30pm (Water Polo 5.00pm – 6.00pm)
• Sunday 22 august – all swimmers 4.00 – 5.30pm (Water Polo 5.00pm – 6.00pm)
•  Sunday 29 august – no training
•  Monday 30 august – no training (bank holiday)

Supported by British Swimming GBswimstars is a voluntary project promoting British aquatic sports and generally the photography and poster design work are provided free of charge.

For players who are coming down training tomorrow please make sure you have Lancaster costumes, Lancaster kit (t-shirts, shorts, etc) .

After a poor start and only managing a draw against Fleetwood the team gradually picked themselves up and made amends as the day went on.  As eventual winners of their group they then faced a straight final with Newcastle (apparently fielding their National League team).

This turned out to be quite a thrilling game if slightly controversial following a disputed Newcastle goal (many felt that the ball did not cross over the line) and a valid Lancaster goal by Ryzsh Detko being disallowed which would have put the Lancaster side two goals ahead, as a consequence the game resulted in a 2-2 draw.  Extra time was played, which again concluded in a draw (1-1).  Due to imminent pool closure (and the ‘older’ players needing some beer!!) it was agreed by the team captains and officials to share the cup.

A special mention goes to the younger players Ben, James, Kamil and Scott who all put in a gallant performance with the support of the more experienced players mentioned above, including the ever attacking forwards Decland Elwood and Michael Brown.

Underlining the club’s ongoing commitment to the promotion and development of the sport, the Festival gave youngsters from 11-14 years the opportunity to compete against 20 clubs and schools from across the north. Carlisle emerged victorious in the ’96 age group, defeating Tyldesley A in the final, while recent Bradbury Cup winners Bolton School took top honours in the ’96 age group with Tyldesley again having to settle for the runners-up spot.

Britain’s Sean Ryder, Ed Scott and Mike Bourne were great ambassadors for the sport and rolled up their sleeves to help out, along with coach Christan Iordache, who was called on to sign autographs between refereeing the games.

Pippa Jones, coach at City of Sheffield Waterpolo was impressed by the event. “It was a fantastic tournament,” she said. “Everyone worked really hard to put on a great day and it was exactly what our kids needed; they loved it!”

Lancaster coach Zak Sly agreed. “All the coaches, players and parents from Lancaster City want to thank Manchester for putting on a well run and organised Festival,” he said. “All the Lancaster players enjoyed it and have all said they learned a lot from the day.”

Organiser Sarah Dunsbee was delighted with the response. “The feedback has been fantastic,” she said. “We have successfully begun the process of raising Water Polo’s profile locally and encouraging youngsters to play. We’ve also managed to raise funds for the club so a great result all round.”

Sourse: Swimming.org

The girls have just flown to France to take part in a Four Nations tournament and will be back home for 3 days before flying off to the Ukraine on 22 July.  Both girls are very glad to have been selected.

Katie said “It is an honour to be selected to play for GB and I would like to thank my Lancaster coaches Rycz Detko, Ron Winn, Steve Smith, Zak Sly and Gary Ellwood for all their help over the years. We hope that we do well.”

Oops, the times for the players for the level two water polo course  have changed again! Here’s the latest:

10th July 1-3 pm
11th July 2-4 pm
17th July 2-4 pm
18th July 2-4 pm
31st July 2-4 pm
1st August 1-3 pm

Back Row:
Geoff Shingler, Ron Winn, Chris Harrison, Ron Flude, Mike Jefferies, Kevin Povey, An Other

Front Row:
Paul Deny, Andrew Van De Sand, Stuart Gardner, Ken Hartley, Mike Ridsdale, Keith Sowden.

ASA U18 Champions 1978 Lancasters 1st ASA Championship.

Andrew Rutlidge, Steven Smith, Colin Povey, Duncan Holmes, Mark Herbert, Dave Riley, Paul Jeffries, John Brown, Rysz Detko, Sandy Fearful, Simon Duckett

Bolton and District Champions

Ron Winn, Colin Povey,Tad Detko, Mark Smith, John Crooks, Rysz Detko, Ron Flude, Ray Holmes, Mike Ridsdale, Stuart Gardner,Ken Hartley, Chris Harrison, Geoff Shingler.

Colin Povey,  Sheila Lynch and Ray Holmes

National 1st Division winners.

Conrad Potts , Mark Smith, Chris Hartley, Colin Burgess, Lee Cooke, Neil Bowers, Danny Johnson, Colin Povey, Sean Love, Stephen Burgess, Gavin Heyward,Andrew Rutlidge, Rysz Detko

]]> http://laswpc.com/waterpolo/3238/feed 0 http://laswpc.com/waterpolo/3235 http://laswpc.com/waterpolo/3235#comments Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:32:44 +0000 zaksly http://laswpc.com/waterpolo/?p=3235

The final game of the series has arrived and it has finally brought out the sun in Poland and with it the crowds!

A tired GB team turned up to the pool knowing that another good performance would see them lift the President’s Cup, another key gong of the events following Matt Holland being crowned ‘tache of the tournament.

GB goal keeper Matt Holland was especially pleased  for the warm weather as he had likend the last game to “…swimming in the local lake!”

Q1
The game started slowly with Poland taking an early advantage from a man up situation. This goal clearly woke up the GB team up as they returned the score straight away. Then a rare lapse in concentration from GB’s Rob Parker presented a young Pole with a great opportunity to score. Fortunately Matt Holland was in the right place to save the day with his perfectly placed fingertips. The end of the quarter saw the team leading 4-1.

Q2
The second quarter started well for GB with a fine goal from Jack Waller. Then followed a number of exclusions for the GB team. However the team continued to steal the ball well and prevented the Poles from scoring from four attempts. Alex Parsonage then broke away and scored finishing the quarter 6-1 to GB.

Q3
A quick start with 2 man ups for GB that were professionally converted by skipper Craig Figes and Adam Scholefield. Again the team defended well against a further two exclusions, managing to again steal the ball and prevent the Poles from scoring. A further two goals from Rob Parker and Ciaran James saw the team pulling away with a 10-1 lead. The Poles were then awarded a penalty, which even the fingertips of the GB keeper couldn’t stop. The quarter ended 10-2 to GB.

Q4
The final quarter saw the Poles score quickly from a GB exclusion followed by another counter-attack. GB counter-countered this with a fifth goal from the impressive Jack Waller and another from Craig Figes.

GB then called for the now traditional time out but the Poles had done their homework well and an “underwater” confrontation took place! Unfortunately GB couldn’t convert the opportunity they had created.

The final say of the competition came from Tom Curwen who totally suprised everyone with the sweetest of shots that seemed to take an age before it dropped in the back of the Polish net. GB had won the game and the tournament. Yes!
 
GB head coach Cristian Iordache said after the game that the team had improved enormously over the past 12 months and that this has been demonstrated by a string of good results and professional performances.
 

Statistics

Goal Scorers

Craig Figes 2
Jack Waller 5
Tom Curwen 2
Rob Parker 2
Adam Scholefield 1
Ciaran James 1 

Full team

Edd Scott
Mike Bourne
Rich Lawler
Joe O’ Regan
Craig Figes
Jack Waller
Alex Parsonage
Tom Curwen
Rob Parker
Adam Scholefield
Charles Booth
Jake Vincent
Ciaran James
Cristian Iordach
Tony Strong
 

The Senior Men’s Water Polo Team, powered by British Gas, are competing in the President Cup in Poland – keep up-to-date with all the action with a humorous blog from Team Manager Tony Strong. Game two, day two: Poland

Game two, day two of the President Cup saw GB play hosts Poland for the first time since the European B tournament in Lugano last year. Expectations were high on both sides.

Q1
The game started well with GB taking early control. The Poles proved to be more experianced than Belarus and defended well until the deadlock was broken by GB skipper Craig Figes. The lead was quickly doubled with a goal from Rob Parker.

GB continued to try to break down the Polish defence but not having played a game today the Poles valiently held on and managed to score from a man down situation. The first quarter finished GB 2-Poland 1

Q2
The second quarter saw GB step up a gear. They stole a number of balls from Poland, quickly turned defence into attack and scored three quick goals on the counter attack, two goals from man up situations and a penalty scored by Alex Parsonage.

The polish team were now struggling to keep up with the pace and the fitness of an impressive GB team, who were starting to impose their authority on the game.
The second quarter finished 8-2 to GB.

Q3
GB started well again, this time with a brace of goals from Rich Lawlor and a fine effort from Mike Bourne. GB continued to dominate play and put pressure on the tiring Polish team. Poland managed to steal four balls quickly, turning defence into attack. The quarter finished 11-2 to GB.

Q4
This quarter saw a rejuvinated Polish team quickly scoring from a counter attack followed by an impressive shot from the 5m line, bringing the score to 11-4.

GB countered scoring from a man up and two counter attacks, with the impressive Ciaren James scoring with only the keeper to beat. The Poles rallied for one big effort and scored themselves from a counter attack only for GB to score themselves with a goal from Adam Schofield.

The GB head coach Cristian Iordache said he was “…very pleased with team team performance, who again worked very hard and met the games objectives.The team play their final game tomorrow knowing that a win will see them crowned winners of the Presidents Cup.” 

Statistics

 
Goal Scorers

Mike Bourne 3
Rich Lawlor 2
Craig Figes 1
Jack Waller 1
Alex Parsonage 1
Rob Parker 2
Adam Scholefield 3
Ciaren James 1

Source:British Swimming

Six Lancaster players, James Alker, Ben Walker, Scott Sharpe, Luke Saul, Noel Howson and Sam Routledge were part of the winning team including head coach Zak Sly and two Lancaster players, Josh Barrett and Dean Akister along with assistant coach Lawrance Daykin and team manager Lesley Barrett were part of the B team.

The weekend run smoothly and saw the A team take  West Midlands, Ireland and North East with the B team taking on East Midlands, South West, Scotland  and London.

The A team then took on their B team in the semi finals. With the A team putting 10 goals away by half time, coach Zak Sly got the lads to play a “run down the clock” tactic in the second.. The North West B team were just a bit weak to hold back the A team but denied the A team several goals with some outstanding defence.  The final score finished North West A 13 North West B 0.

North West A then took on South West in the final which was a great game to watch with the score being level up until the last 17 seconds of the game were Zak called a time out and with four seconds on the clock North West put the ball away in the back of the net to see them to victory.

North West can now boast that they are the best Region in the country after all three age groups, juniors, youth and academy both boys and girls winning their championships! This is down to the hard work of the players, staff and parents of the North West.

A big thank you must go to the North West committee especially Joanne Mountfield, who has not only organised the North West teams but also the whole Inter Region championships. Another thank you must go to Mike Heskith who has been the tournament director for these championships.

North West A players: Jack Deslanders (GK), Drew Winstanley, James Alker, Noel Howson, Ben Walker, Simon Morton – Grant, Sam Routledge, Ben Sandford, Daniel Peek, Tom Hadley, Scott Shapre, Luke Sail and James Salt

North West A staff: Zak Sly (Coach), Tim Dunsbee (Assistant Coach) and Colin Walsh (Team Manager)

North West B players: Stephan Williams (GK), Kieran Harrison (GK), Joe Selby, Andrew Robinson, Thomas Grieve, Adam Toone, Cameron Adamson, Niall Crilly, Dean Akister, Remmy Gorton, Lewis Daly, Aaron Winstanley and Josh Barrett

North West B staff: Andy McGinty (Coach), Lawrance Daykin (Assistant Coach) and Lesley Barrett (Team Manager)

Day two started very cold, with both teams showing a reluctance to enter the water. The British team however warmed up proceedings with a rousing rendition of the national anthem, they also gained the first psychological advantage by revealing the moustaches had been shaved off!

The game started slowly with both teams struggling to hold on to the ball as hands were getting cold however GB opened the scoring with captain Craig Figes scoring two goals from two attacks. The Belarusians took advantage of two man-up situations and scored both times, however two goals from Tom Curwen finished the quarter 4-2.

The second quarter saw GB looking very sharp and stealing the ball from the Belarus team virtually every time they attacked, this, coupled with some impressive counter attacking, saw the team score six unanswered goals, two of which came from man-up situations. The end of the quarter saw the team leading 10-2.

The 3rd quarter saw some changes to the GB team, however this did not stop the scoring, Mike Bourne scoring a brace and an impressive 5m shot from  Jake Vincent kept the momentum up and the pressure on a now tiring Belarus team. GB continued to steal the ball well and counterattack finishing the quarter strongly with a 15-2 advantage.

The final quarter saw a feast of goals from a team with their tails up, again the majority of which came from the counter attack however this was also combined with a penalty, special mention needs to go to “chucky” aka Charles Booth who was asked to take the teams first penalty of the tournament, Chucky stepped up to the plate and coolly put the ball in the back of the net.

A brief lapse in concentration by The Brits saw the Belarus team score past the GB keeper to keep their spirits up.

The GB head coach added one last twist to the game when he called a time out with only 20 seconds to go, after an inspired talk (and a cunning plan) the ball was played back into the GB team, who after a cleverly worked move saw Adam Scholefield score the final goal of the game.

The final score was GB 23- Belarus 3

GB TEAM

Michael Bourne, Thomas Curwen, Craig Figes, Matthew Holland, Ciaran James, Richard Lawlor, Joseph O’Regan Robert Parker
Alexander Parsonage, Glen Robinson, Sean Ryder, Adam Scholefield, Edward Scott, Jake Vincent, Jack Waller

Source:British Swimming

Lancaster hit Preston had and put away 13 goals. The strong defence and goalkeeping denied Preston of any goals. with the final score Lancaster 13 Preston 0

Full report coming soon.

The GB team started the game in high spirits sporting a variety of moustaches for their ‘Tash of the Tournament’ contest in aid of Movember. This worked well to throw the young Belarus team off their game initially!

Birthday boy Jake Vincent scored first to put the team into an early lead. Further goals followed from Alex Parsonage, Rob Parker and Tom Curwen to give the British team a 4-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter saw a quick goal from Belarus but GB were taking full advantage of the man-up situation and scored a further five unanswered goals. The score at half time reflected the dominance of a strong GB team and we finished the quarter 9-1 up.

In the third quarter the team were clearly enjoying an attacking game scoring seven goals with only two in reply from Belarus. We had a 16-3 lead by the end of the third.

The final quarter brought back memories of 1966, when after a brief attack the Belarus ball appeared not to cross the line but in the spirit of the game the goal was given.

The incident clearly spurred GB back into action seeing them score five unanswered goals, the pick of which was Rich Lawler’s – yes for those of you who follow GB water polo I said Rich Lawler. The match ended with a 21-5 victory to the British team.

After the game Head Coach Cristian Iordache smiled and said the boys played very well and achieved all of the pre-match aims and objectives.

Tomorrow the team face Poland in what should be another good game.

Source:British Swimming

In the Lancaster University team Decland Ellwood, Mike Brown and Gary Ellwood took part.

Last year was cold and I belive this year with a bitter wind made the playing in a man made lake even colder!

The grudge match was upon us. The fight for third place in the group.  Germany have beaten us twice recently but the last game only a few weeks ago in Russia finished 12-13 so we were up for beating them this time.

Q1

We started with some great defensive work by Fiona McCann in the pit and all the Germans could try was to lob the goal which Rosie easily saved. They stole the ball again and attacked but Rosie was there to keep the score at 0-0.  We then received a man up but was not able to use it to take the lead and the Germans also couldn’t use their man up.

Six minutes in and the game was still 0-0, with neither team managing to finish their attacks.  Finally we did it, Angie got an exclusion and played a quick one-two with Fan L to score our first goal.  GB were 1-0 up, but the quarter wasn’t finished yet.

Hazel was kicked out to give the Germans a man up which they subsequently scored.  Again attacks for both teams came to nothing and in the last minute of the quarter Hazel got excluded from the pit to give the Germans a chance. This was followed quickly by another exclusion for Frankie meaning we were two down.

Our defence was strong and three times they hit the post, but on the 4th attempt they managed to get the ball in the net.  End of quarter 2-1 to Germany.

Q2

Both teams were very even with attacks each way but shots were saved or hit the posts.  The Germans again managed to break the goal drought with a goal from the top.  However on our next attack a great ball into the pit led to an excellent backhand goal from Angie.  We were not going to let the Germans escape!  Another steal in the pit by Fran L led to an excellent shot from Alex Rutlidge, but with no goal the score finished at half time 4-2 to Germany.

Q3

The third quarter started with an exclusion for Fran L, however, we managed to steal the ball in their man up and went on the counter.  The very low scoring game continued with so many chances for both, Rosie helping GB to keep the score low with some great saves.  Somehow a save by Rosie managed to trickle over towards the line and the linesman gave it as a goal.

The GB girls continued with such a good organised defence during man downs and 6-on-6, and when we pressed in the last 10 seconds we created some great counterattacks.  With the seconds counting down for this quarter we were in attack and just before the buzzer went Alex shot the ball into the back of the net.  Score for the quarter 1-2 to GB, but total score was 5-4 to Germany.

Q4

Final quarter and we were determined to win the game.  The GB team were fighting but we just couldn’t use our man ups to even up the score and go ahead.  On a German attack they shot from the top and scored. In defence shots were blocked throughout the quarter by Chloe and steals in the pit by Rosie who remained a strong goalkeeper throughout the match.

In attack we kept putting the ball in the pit but not quite managing to take full control of the ball before the defenders were all over us.  Shots by Chloe and Alex and the rest of the team continued but the game finished with a low score of 6-4 to Germany.

Captain Fran Leighton said after the match: “I think we had a good strong game in defence and this was shown in our man down conceded. We got a good number of kicks out and the plays were good but we couldn’t just manage to finish them.  We’ve got them next week and we’ll sort it out for them!”

The match against the Germans was so nail biting, it was so close throughout the match with a goal here and a goal there.  The girls showed great teamwork in defence and have really improved working together in this way.  Even in the last few months since last going away with the girls in March I can see such an improvement in their play.

I am so impressed with the girls throughout this tournament and I hope they go into the next round in Sicily with great confidence.  The girls are now playing at this top level with Russia, Germany, Hungary and Italy, and although some of the scores didn’t look so good on paper, the matches were excellent and we were always in the games.

Statistics

GB Team

Rosemary Morris (City of Liverpool), Robyn Nicholls (City of Manchester), Frances Leighton (City of Sheffield), Chloe Wilcox (City of Manchester), Hazel Musgrove (City of Liverpool), Francesca Clayton (City of Liverpool), Lisa Gibson (City of Manchester), Angela Winstanley-Smith (City of Manchester), Fiona McCann  (City of Liverpool), Alexandra Rutlidge (City of Manchester), Rachel Drabble (City of Liverpool), Rebecca Kershaw (City of Manchester), Francesca Snell (West London Penguins), Victoria Bowen (City of Sheffield), Jade Smith (City of Manchester), Aine Hoy (City of Manchester)

Source: British Swimming

Q1

Although we kept our record of winning the swim offs with Rachel Drabble this time, we did not score first and Russia with a quick pass into the pit went 1-0, and then quickly 2-0.  Good defence by Fiona as centre defender, with the rest of the team stepping back to help, kept the score at 2-0.

In a GB attack Angie drew a penalty and Chloe Wilcox stepped up to put it in the back of the net: 2-1.  Russia got away for a counterattack but with a one-on-one Rosie kept big in the goal and stopped a lob shot.

However, Russia got another within the quarter before Victoria Bowen did a great defensive block that led to a counterattack first by Vicky and then passed to Chloe who drew an exclusion.  Frankie converted this man up after nice passes around the arc.  Again Russia were back and Hazel got excluded in defence which led to a goal by Russia finishing the quarter 4-2.

Q2

Right from the start the Russians were attacking, stealing a ball in the pit, getting Frankie excluded and scoring a quick goal.  GB had their chances with balls into the pit for Angie, Fran L, and Vicky Bowen but on this occasion Angie linked to Fran but the ball was just too short to capitalise on it.

Russia kept scoring on their attacks and had a number of man ups with our centre defenders being excluded a lot throughout the quarter.  Our next attack drew an exclusion and with great movement by the girls meant Rachel Drabble took an opening to shoot a great goal.  We couldn’t match the goals scored by Russia but one last attack at the end of the quarter led to a penalty which Frankie Snell confidently shot in the top left corner.  Half time score: 8-4.

Q3

Off the teams went again and it followed much the same story.  The Russians drew a penalty which they converted closely followed by a counterattack where they scored.  We kept fighting, however. It’s great to see that the GB girls will not ever give up. A shot from outside by Frankie just hit the post.  Angie kept fighting in the pit and drew another penalty which Rachel Drabble took, unfortunately this time missing.

Victoria Bowen received three majors and was excluded from the game as was Fiona.  We created a great goal after Becky Kershaw went down the wing and passed to Fran Clayton who slotted it into the net.  End of quarter score was 4-2, total score 12-6.

Q4

Chloe Wilcox won the swim off to start the play but no goal came from the attack.  The Russians came but Rosie came out of goal to steal the ball from the centre forward.  A man down for Russia came but Rosie blocked a great shot to keep the score down.

Now we lost Frankie to three majors but our defence kept strong and never dropped from the tactics. Angie drew a man up from one of our attacks but the shot from Fran Clayton was blocked in goal by a defender.

Finally we broke our goal scoring slump this quarter with a good pass into pit by Rachel and a backhand shot by Fran L.  Score for the quarter 5-1.  End score 17-7 to Russia.

Statistics

GB Team

Rosemary Morris (City of Liverpool), Robyn Nicholls (City of Manchester), Frances Leighton (City of Sheffield), Chloe Wilcox (City of Manchester), Hazel Musgrove (City of Liverpool), Francesca Clayton (City of Liverpool), Lisa Gibson (City of Manchester), Angela Winstanley-Smith (City of Manchester), Fiona McCann  (City of Liverpool), Alexandra Rutlidge (City of Manchester), Rachel Drabble (City of Liverpool), Rebecca Kershaw (City of Manchester), Francesca Snell (West London Penguins), Victoria Bowen (City of Sheffield), Jade Smith (City of Manchester), Aine Hoy (City of Manchester)

Source: British Swimming