Over the weekend of 9th-10th March, Sedgefield Water Polo’s men’s team travelled to Eton College, Windsor, to play in their final weekend of the British Water Polo League in Championship 2. The team knew that a win on the Saturday would clinch not only promotion as Champions to next seasons Division 2, but would also secure a third consecutive promotion. However, with games to play over the weekend against Worthing and Southampton, there was still a chance they could miss out on the top three spots to gain promotion, meaning there was everything to play for.
Saturday’s game against Worthing was expected to be a tightly contested game due to the history between both clubs whereby games played in the last two seasons ended in a draw. The team was up for the challenge. As expected, it started off with both teams defending really well and not giving each other many opportunities to score. It took almost a full quarter of the game for Sedgefield to break the deadlock and score the first goal of the match. With two more goals within a minute from the Sedgefield team, the score going into the end of the first quarter was 3-1 to Sedgefield. The second quarter saw Worthing fight back and, by half time, they led on the scoreboard by 5-6. The third quarter saw Sedgefield start to take control of the game but, with less than two minutes to go, they had a player red carded. This meant they had to play the next four minutes of the match with one player down. With a mighty performance by the team, they conceded one goal and that gave them the belief to then go on and win. The game ended 12-10 to Sedgefield; meaning the team became Champions of Championship 2, and they still had one game to play the following day.
On the Sunday, Sedgefield played Southampton and the team was determined to maintain their 100% win record. This was again another tight game with lots of goals by both teams but neither being able to pull away from their opponent. The score was 13-14 to Southampton going into the final quarter and the atmosphere was very tense on the balcony. Sedgefield stepped up another level – determined not to lose the game – and ended the game 20-17 winners. They finished the season not only as champions but as ‘The Invincible’s’.
The men’s team – ranging in age from 15-29 years old is currently self-funded by the players and their parents – is looking for sponsorship for the 2024-2025 season from local businesses. If this is something you may be interested in, please get in touch.
In addition to Junior and Senior sessions, Sedgefield Water Polo Club now offers a beginner session, at Newton Aycliffe Leisure Centre on a Saturday afternoon, for those wishing to try this fun and exciting sport. All sessions need to be booked in advance on our Club App, so please check our website for further information and joining instructions, email: sedgefieldwp@hotmail.com or contact 07579 030598.
