Greece, as expected, defeated Czech
Republic 13-9 in the final of the women’s water polo competition in Hurghada.
And South Africa claimed the bronze medal with a clinical 9-4 victory over
neighbour Zimbabwe. All four teams have qualified for the ANOC World Beach
Games in August and will join eight other teams for the festival.
Classification 1-2
GREECE 13 CZECH REPUBLIC 9
Czech Republic blew a 5-2 advantage
midway through the second quarter to lose to Greece by four goals. It was there
for the taking. Greece led twice in the first quarter only for the Czechs to
rebound each time for 2-2 at the break.
Three quick Czech goals, including
one from 11 metres — not bad in an 18m pool — and another on counter had the
match at 5-2. Then Greece restructured, scored twice from eight metres — a
feature of its game in Somabay — and the middle goal on extra-man attack to
have the score at 5-5 by halftime.
Four goals in four minutes took
Greece to 9-5 with goals traded for an impressive 10-6 final-break scoreline.
The final period was even with the Czechs unable to produce consecutive goals,
coming to within three at 1:40 before giving up the final goal to Greece.
Match Difference Makers
Dionysia Koureta was the star of the
match with five goals for Greece with Evdokia Tsimara chiming in with three
while four Czechs scored twice — Nikola Busauerova, Karolina Javurkova,
Josefina Hola and captain Karolina Hlavata.
The Decider
The eight-metre missile in the second
period that started the Greek revival at 5-3 down.
Stats Critical
Greece was excellent on extra-man
attack with five from nine to Czech Republic’s two from seven. Amazingly, there
were no penalties called.
What They Said
Alexandra Kalaitzi (GRE)
“The Czech team was really good
today; they brought their best. We tried a lot of different things with our
offence; not all of it worked as we had planned. Eventually, though, we found a
way and now we’re on our way to Bali for the World Beach Games.”
On the difference in the gold-medal
game: “We showed our strength, especially on the defensive part. At first, we
made some mistakes. But quarter after quarter, we did better and better.”
Lydia Mavrota (GRE) – Captain and
named top women’s goalkeeper of the tournament
“Having played against the Czechs
before, we knew the team. We know some things from when we played earlier here
in this tournament, and we saw some things in their other games. We were
prepared and we had a plan. This morning, we had a training that helps us relax,
because we knew we wanted to win very much. We know we are a good team, but we
needed to prove it. And we did.
Where Greece saw their special
advantage against the Czech Republic: “Our result started with playing good
defence. We had some great defensive plays.”
Karolina Hlavata (CZE) —Captain
“It’s great. Playing for the first
time at the beach is nice. It’s tough, but we qualified here for the World
Beach Games in Bali. It’s a little bit sad that we lost in the finals to Greece
as it was a tight match, and we had a chance. Overall, though, it’s been a
great tournament and a great experience. “
On beach water polo: “It’s much
faster, much better for spectators. For us, it’s much quicker – lots of goals,
lots of exclusions. It’s way more fun than the normal water polo. I know I
should not say that, but it’s true!”
Classification 3-4
SOUTH AFRICA 9 ZIMBABWE 4
South Africa had a repeat victory
over Zimbabwe to take the bronze medal, thanks to mainly to a 5-0 third
quarter. South Africa won the first period 2-0 with the second goal on counter.
Zimbabwe was on top in the second with an extra-man goal and a penalty
conversion for 2-2 at the changeover.
When Keira van der Loosdrecht
backhanded in a centre-forward goal early in the third period, it set off a deluge
of goals with two on counter and two on extra for South Africa. The fourth
quarter gave heart to Zimbabwe with Dayna Bond slotting two centre-forward
goals and South Africa closing the scoring with a penalty goal.
Match Difference Makers
Van der Loosdrecht with her four
goals, the same number she scored against Greece the day before. Bond, who
scored three goals, finished with an incredible 18 for the week, boosted by her
nine-goal haul in the opening clash with Greece.
The Decider
That centre-forward spark in the
third period.
Stats Critical
South Africa struggled on extra with
just two from 11 to Zimbabwe’s one from four. South Africa missed one of its
two penalty attempts and Zimbabwe nailed its sole shot.
What They Said
Kierah van de Loosdrecht (RSA) – Four
goals
“It’s really exciting and I know we
all really enjoyed it. We played for each other as a team and we’re just really
proud of one another. We gave each other the confidence to play that well
together.”
Kendall de Beer (RSA)
“Every time we play them, it’s going
to be a good game to watch. We played well, but more importantly, we played
well together as a team.”
Paige Tancrell (RSA)
“It feels unbelievable, honestly. All
of us are way too excited to go to Bali. I’m so stoked we came out with the
win.”
Dayna Bond – Zimbabwe Captain and
Tournament’s Top Scorer Award Winner
“I’m proud of myself, but I’m also
proud of my team because I couldn’t have done it without my team. Obviously,
water polo is a very team-oriented sport and I managed to capitalise on all my
team’s hard work. I really appreciated all of them and our time here on the
international stage. Each and every one of them made us very proud. We’re going
to take motivation from this and come back even harder in Bali. We’ve got three
months. We’ll get there.”
Final Placings
Greece , Czech Republic, South
Africa, Zimbabwe.
Qualified Teams For ANOC World Beach
Games
Greece, Czech Republic, South Africa,
Zimbabwe.
Written by Russell McKinnon, World
Aquatics Water Polo Correspondent
No comments:
Post a Comment