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Water Polo: 2010 LEN European water polo championships qualifying

May 4, 2024

The British Women’s Water Polo team beat the Czech Republic but fail to overcome the Netherlands in a round-robin LEN European A qualification tournament.

Britain 17-7 Czech Republic

In their first match, Britain started strongly against a lackluster Czech side with goals from Angie Winstanley-Smith and Fran Leighton. Cruising by half time, the Brits mixed the play up and tried different defensive formations while maintaining their lead. The Czech side fought back but were unable to overcome the tough defence as Britain eased to victory.

“We’re really pleased with the result,” said team captain Ros Griffiths. “We were confident going in and the girls played a good match.

“Angie [Winstanley-Smith] and Fran [Leighton] were on excellent form so we just need to keep this momentum going into tomorrow.”

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Netherlands 11-5 Britain

Next up were host nation the Netherlands who Britain had to beat to guarantee qualification for the European Finals in August.

Both sides were going for a win and matched each other play for play in a real end-to-end game. Brit Chloe Wilcox surprised the opposition with a rapid cross-goal shot to get the scoring underway and by the end of the first quarter the teams were level at 2-2.

The Brits kept attacking with strong play and good performances from both Angie Winstanley-Smith and Fran Leighton.

At the other end of the pool, Rosie Morris blocked many Dutch advances. The Netherlands edged ahead but penalties from Rachel Drabble and Hannah Wild brought the Brits back into contention.

The final half saw the british side weaken under a barge of Dutch attacks with the host nation finding the back of the net six times to Britain’s two. The 11-5 victory secures Dutch qualification to the LEN European Water Polo Championships in August.

Great Britain finished third in their group with Greece in second and Czech Republic in fourth.

British team member Robyn Nicholls believes the tournament has been a learning experience for the team. “We’re disappointed, but all of the girls played really well this weekend,” she said.

“We’ve got a much needed week off to rest and then we’ll get back into training, practice a few things that we’ve taken away from here and prepare for the Kiriski Cup and World League.”

Alice Neal, Sportsister
The Women’s Sports Magazine

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