The Saints Go Marching On
Wednesday 03 March 2010
The Saint Andrews Water Polo team claimed third place and a bronze medal in the Trophy Final of the Men’s Water Polo competition at last weekend’s BUCS Championships in Sheffield.Having qualified through the semi-finals at Nottingham, the team were ready to compete and had high hopes of a medal.
The Water Polo finals are contested in a league format, with a league of four teams at both Championship and Trophy levels, the Championships being a level above the Trophy. Each side would play a game a day at the tournament with the opening game on Friday and the closing game on Sunday.
The Saints were drawn in a group alongside Plymouth, Imperial College and local side Sheffield Hallam. It was a tough draw with some strong opposition, though the team performed admirably to gain the bronze.
Their first match against Plymouth was an absolute thriller. In a tough game where everybody played their part, it was Tom Cramond who scored the winner with seconds left on the clock to give the Saints a maiden victory by 12-11.
The second match against Hallam was less successful. With less than two minutes on the clock, one of the Saints received a kick to the head and was sent to A&E. The rhythm of the team was disrupted and coupled with some dubious refereeing decisions, the Saints suffered an 18-9 defeat.
However, against Imperial the Saints upped their game although it was not quite enough to overhaul the eventual winners as they lost out 17-14. Competing with an Olympic GB player on their team, Imperial were always going to be a tough match, but the Saints performed admirably and were by a long way the team that came closest to defeating the champions.
After the tournament Water Polo President Lorcan Morgan was delighted with the effort and commitment shown by the team. ‘Overall we had a fantastic time in Sheffield. We made the most of it despite having brought down a squad of only 10 players, as oppose to everyone else's 16!’
‘Now we’re looking forward to two weeks time to the Celtic Nations tournament, since 5 of us have made the Scottish Universities team. And then in a month’s time we have the Scottish Cup which we also hope to win.’
Following their successful season, the Saints will next year be competing at the highest level of competition and will no doubt provide more success stories.
Team: Lorcan Morgan, Edward Macdonagh (c), James Dickinson, Liam Finlay, Tom Cramond, Miles Radcliffe-Trenner, Luke Parsons, Ivor Mollema, Alastair Honey, Gordon McCracken,
Support: Ian Maccallum – coach, Tess Herzenberg – physio / camera-woman
The last game of the tournament rounded things up perfectly ending in a 10-1 thrashing of Bradford uni and almost the entire team getting on the score sheet.
The team now look ahead to the finals in Sheffield with the possibility of clinching the BUCS title as well as the Scottish cup next month which would complete a triple crown of league/tournament trophies (the elusive water polo treble).
Special mention should go to all players in the squad who have been extremely committed in and out the pool. Also to the coach Ian McCallum whose dedication and passion to the team and the sport have been invaluable. There is no doubt that without his tactical genius these victories would never have happened. Finally, thanks should go to Michelle Risinger and Simon Metcalfe who provided great support over the weekend.
Written by Ed MacDonagh
