Women’s water polo outstrips men

Press, 11 January 1978, Page 24

Women’s water polo outstrips men

By

RAY CAIRNS

Since the first, tentative New Zealand women’s club water polo championship, at Auckland three years ago and contested only by Auckland clubs and the Canterbury representative team, the female facet of the sport has grown tremendously. The subsequent championships, at Whakatane then at Auckland again, have attracted large entries, and 10 teams will contest the Wella tournament at Queen Elizabeth II Park, starting tomorrow. Christchurch (four), Wellington and Auckland (both two) and Wanganui, provide nine of the clubs, the Queensland state side completing the field. The women’s event thus has a better entry than did the men’s championship, with six New Zealand clubs, and four overseas teams. Just as it is inconceivable that Queensland, the current Australian interstate champion, will be beaten for the major tournament honours, so there will be a new national champion. Avondale, the winner of the other three tournaments, is now part of the Auckland representative water polo scene which operates as the Newmarket dub. It will have two teams contesting the title, and Newmarket Sharks is effectively an Auckland representative team. Certainly, the balance of

power in women’s water polo has swung from Auckland, the founder, to Canterbury and Wellington, but with the concentration of players spread around those centre’s various teams, Newmarket Sharks will enjoy favouritism for the New Zealand title.

Otherwise, it should be an extremely close competition. Beckenham is the top-seeded Christchurch team, but there has been an extremely close competition this season in the j pool which will host these I

championships. Pegasus, North Beach and Wharenui have all shown themselves capable of beating the others, and Beckenham, and there are likely to be more close games than there were in the men’s competition.

Wellington is represented by Maranui and Upper Hutt, both of which should be strong teams, especially after Wellington’s successes at Labour weekend. The other entrants are Newmarket Dolphins and Wanganui East, and all 10 teams will play the others in a round-robin competition. It involves at least two games each day, and for each team, three games on one of the days. The tournament concludes on Sunday, and the New Zealand team—already chosen—then embarks on its Australian tour.