Miles Rescues Shoreham In Water Polo Debut
(27.01.2018) Game 1 DMWP 13 & Under League
The Sussex Mini Water Polo league kicked off last night and it was an exciting game enjoyed by an enthusiastic crowd of around 50 family and friends.
The game started well for Shoreham with 8 year old Joe Wood firing home a counter attack goal and taking the honour of scoring the first goal of our new league. Undeterred by going behind, and the Shoreham goal briefly deflating, Bognor rallied and by the end of the quarter were 3-1 ahead – Tristan Roderick and Owen Halligan sharing the goals for Bognor.
In the second quarter Shoreham came back into the game, with the Baker brothers scoring one a piece. Shoreham were also able to shut down the Bognor threat with some strong defending and the teams reached half time at 3 goals apiece.
The third quarter was a repeat of the first, Bognor again pulling away with more goals from Halligan and Roderick, including a superb individual effort from Halligan, who, after a strong swim rifled home the finish in-off the bar. It might have been more for Bognor if not for fantastic close range save from Frey Warman-Fox. After a slick move down the left, Bognor transferred the ball quickly from goalkeeper Cass Humphrey, through Priest, McMullan, Roderick and finally Halligan, who’s point blank shot was blocked by the on-rushing Warman-Fox. Will Muzio pulled one back for Shoreham with a clever flick over the goalkeeper to keep Shoreham within arm’s reach. Bognor would take a 6-4 lead into the final quarter.
The final quarter was a tight affair and Shoreham pushed hard to get back into the game. Wave after wave of Shoreham attacks were repelled by the goalkeeper and with time ebbing away, Coach Gray could see the comeback slipping by. Shoreham needed a hero. Up step Jamie Miles, the 9 year old pulled one goal back with a little over 2 minutes to play. His shot powerfully going over the keeper’s head. Then, as the game went into the final minute, the team conjured up one final chance to score. Some excellent last ditch defending from Shoreham quelled the Bognor attack and Idris Baker picked up the loose ball. He coolly passed the ball forward to Miles, still with a lot to do, he swam through on goal and under heavy pressure lobbed the ball over the goalkeeper into the far corner of the net, much to the delight of the crowd.
The game finished 6-6, which is relatively low scoring for Water Polo. This score reflects the excellent defending and team work from all the players with everyone giving 100%. We should give a special mention to both captains, Jack Lee of Bognor and Alex Stepney-Warburton of Shoreham who worked tirelessly for their team and won the ball back countless times, taking a lot of responsibility for covering back and making it so hard for the opposition team to score.
Shoreham Stingrays 6
Goals – I. Baker, E. Baker, W.Muzio, J Miles (2), J Wood
Bognor Barracudas 6
Goals – O.Halligan (3) T. Roderick (3)