WATER POLO Canterbury teams still favoured

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33787, 8 March 1975, Page 16

WATER POLO Canterbury teams still favoured

(By

R. M. CAIRNS)

AUCKLAND.

Both the' Canterbury senior and under 21 water polo teams go into the second day of the Rothmans national championships still favourites to win their respective titles, but not encouraged to any great degree by their first day performances at the Newmarket Olympic pool. Both have perfect records: the senior team beat Combined Services, 10-4, and New Zealand Universities, 11-7, and the under 21 side had 11-1 (Wanganui) and 6-5 (Auckland) victories. But in each case, there were some disquieting features of the team’s play, small but important things that will have to be rectified in the next two days play. In a sense, though, the Canterbury teams have cleared the first hurdle. The senior team leans heavily on players also in the under 21 side, and six of the team had four games yesterday. From now on, the programme is a little lighter, and some of the basic errors—most noticeably lax passing and, to a lesser degree, loose markingmay be attributable to tiredness.

The most difficult game for the Canterbury sides was the under 21 clash with Auckland which, with Manawatu, looks the strongest opposition. There was never more than a goal between the teams, and Auckland was twice in front, but the goal-scoring ability of Richard Clark and Hark Harding—both got three goals — carried Canterbury through.

It was almost a no-contest in the morning, however, against Wanganui, Canterbury’s only mediocre quarter being the third when it only scored a single goal. Clark scored five goals in that match, Mark Lewis and Craig Wright two each, and Harding and John Davie the others.

The senior team had Its greatest problems with the universities. which went into a 2-1 lead in the first quarter and was still only trailing, 8-6, at three-quarter time. But in that third quarter, and again in the final quarter, the passes were made with more deliberation—Lewis, added to the team to compensate for the late withdrawal of Peter McClure, showing out as well as anvone—and the general level of play improved accordingly. The Canterbury women’s team has struck more problems with the greater experience of the Auckland sides. It lost, a little unluckily, to Ponsonby, 5-4, and more obviously, 7-2. to Western Disricts. Of the six goals, the 15-year-old Beckenham player, Judith Sunbeam, has five ol them. Linda Clark the other one. These girls have more to play for as a New Zealand tournament team is being chosen to visit Australia. One who mu“t already have strong claims is Jane Irwin.