SWIMMING

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 56, Issue 80, 16 January 1936, Page 7

SWIMMING

SOME FUNDAMENTAL POINTS.

THE SPORT OF WATER POLO.

(By "Backstroke.")

Water-polo is a game which is becoming increasingly popular through New Zealand. Regular competitions are held in large centres, and the game is gaining adherents in Ashburton. Thus the following remarks will be of interest.

These are fundamental conditions that govern the whole constitution of the game of water polo: 1\ That it cannot be played by anyone not actually swimming. 2. That a player cannot be collared or touched in any way unless he is in actual possession of the ball. They are axioms of great simplicity, but they need be observed literally if water polo is to be the game it should be.

Requirements of Players. A water polo player must be a swimmer of many parts. He must possess both speed and endurance • his speed must be that quality that gets going with the very first kick, his endurance must include the power of resisting lengthy immersion. He must be buoyant and must have an intimate knowledge of the value of every turn of the hands and feet. In addition to these attributes as a swimmer, he needs the qualities that should bo possessed by players of all games perception, promptitude, and pertinacity, and he must understand and put into practice the greatest of all requirements in side games—unity. He should be an individualist, but in whichever department he excels shooting, throwing, dribbling, or defending—the objective must be combined work of his side ; his individual ability reaches its full value when it is a part of a scheme; if he tries to be the whole of it, it deservedly fails. He must be able to take the ball in every imaginable position, to control it when he has it, and to get rid of it intelligently—by which I mean that the strength, the direction and the moment of the throw or pass should be calculated so nicely that it reaches the desired spot in perfect order. He will not do these things without constant and assiduous practice and if he can carry out the practising under the guidance of an experienced player, so much the better. Practice is essential, however and the budding player would be wise not to rely only on matches for acquiring the necessary knowledge of detail. A Gruelling Came.

Water polo is not for the swimmer who cannot withstand continuous and frequent immersion. I say this quite deliberately, and I trust that all those who, whilst benefiting from a judicious swim, are constitutionally unable to enjoy a long spell in the water will abjure the game. It can do no good; after a time-it will afford no pleasure, and in the end it is tolerably certain to do an immensity of harm. Many a swimmer may be allured to the game by ,the statement that the duration of a match is only 14 minutes but this time is for actual play, all delays for fouls, free and corner throws, etc., are deducted from the time of play, so that matches are seldom over in twenty minutes, and they frequently take longer. If the game is a severe one, and many of them are, the players have a "gruelling" time. It has to be remembered also that when a player gets into his club team the calls upon him are frequent, and in the thick of the season he may have to play sometimes twice a week. Bo 1 warn the aspirant for water polo honours to look well before he leaps into the fray. There are plenty of good swimmers in Ashburton who can,respond to all the calls of the game and become a loyal adherent to the game and provide the healthy enjoyment that is raison d'etre of all pastime.

Keeping in Condition. In this business of training two distinct elements immediately crop up. The young swimmer, with lots of promise but little knowledge o style or competitive strategy and the. othei for keeping the champion m condition. Both systems are closely interwoven; but most coaches believe the form and not fights, are what gets results in swimming. It is bad policy to contuii ally swim against the watch, and it 3S impossible for a swimmer to concentrate on relaxation, arm, and bieat control, position in water, and leg beats, all of which are ««» the devotion of experiment, study and oractice, if a swimmer is concentrating on fast times, when form is never masteSwimming at about half speed, the pupil has an excellent chance to study, sav ierky arm movements, mental poise, ease of breathing, and above all, relaxation. If a swimmer goes through his study at his greatest speed, say with someone holding a watch outside the pool, what will be the result He immediately places himself under a severe mental and physical pressure in a vain endeavour to make the best show possible, lighting by might and main to make speed, finding in it an impossibility to relax, breathe properly, and concentrate on style, for style is 90 per cent and lastly he is unable to pay any attention to the one hundred and one points of technique and their proper execution, and wiuld in all probability end up by leaving the water exhausted, depressed and discouraged. All coaches agree that swimming should be a pleasant enterprise, good things to eat between swims, of course good times, good fellowship, jolly sport and plenty of sleep. Skill in Cycles.

National skill at games is becoming a matter of cycles, says an English writer. Nothing seemed less likely in the hey-day of Borotra, Latoste and Cochet that an early foreign victory in the French lawn tennis championships.

But just as Great Britain through long years failed to produce successors to the Doherty brothers, who dominated the lawn tennis of two continents, so our neighbours seek in vain for the young men who can carry on the tradition of the three exponents who fust made France great in lawn tennis. They have the consolation that their turn will surely ooihe.