Sedgefield seal dramatic U19 Water Polo victory

Sedgefield won the U19 Boys National Water Polo title after a dramatic penalty shootout against defending champions Exeter.

Both teams were in great form during the final match of the championships, and the scores were level for most of the match.

A goal from Arthur Davis gave Exeter the lead during the closing stages of the game, and at one minute to go they looked a safe bet for the win.

However, just 57 seconds before the end of the match, a cracking shot from Michael Cousins put Sedgefield back in the game. At full time the scores were level, 8-8.

During the penalty shootout, misses by Tom Hutchens and Jack Cutting saw the Exeter side knocked out as Sedgefield drove every goal home.

Sedgefield team captain John Pratt commented on the team’s performance: “It feels amazing. We won the under 17s last year, so we’re ecstatic. To win a final on penalty shootouts is nerve-wracking.

“My heart was in my mouth and I just couldn’t watch, but it is great to win on penalties – it makes it more exciting.

“We were expecting to make it to the final, but we knew it was going to be hard. We worked well as a team and we were 7-4 down going into the final quarter, and to come back and win shows great character from the whole team.”

Manchester defeat Croydon in bronze medal match

City of Manchester beat Croydon Amphibians by a significant margin in the U19 Boys final, taking home the bronze medal.

The northern side took a resounding lead from the first quarter, with Ben Riding scoring a hat-trick to give the team a three goal cushion going into the second.

Croydon fought back with goals from Tomas Gibson, Ethan Staunton and Kontantinas Chambalis before half time, but it was not enough to throw the Manchester side off their game.

A final goal from Kurtis Watson with 17 seconds left on the clock gave City of Manchester a comfortable defeat against their London rivals. They won bronze, the final score 15-8 in their favour.

Boys U19 Results