Watford advance after third place finish (From Watford Observer)

Watford Water Polo Club advance in ASA National Age Group Championships

3:00pm Friday 22nd March 2013 in Sport

Teams from across the country competed at Woodside Leisure Centre for a place in the second round of the ASA National Age Group Championships and it was good news for the home team.

Watford Water Polo Club’s junior side made it through to the next stage as they finished in third place overall.

Solihull, Castleford, Manchester, Sheffield and Basingstoke were all represented at the event and Watford made a shaky start as they were beaten 9-3 against eventual winners Solihull.

The hosts next faced Castleford and started well. They went ahead and strong pit play from Jason Attwood resulted in a further two goals.

Hamish Hudson and Paul Botje were also on target as the Watford team recorded a 5-3 victory – their first win of the afternoon.

A 10-2 defeat followed against Manchester and Watford needed to win one of their remaining two matches to have a chance of qualifying.

Watford comfortably dispatched Sheffield 7-2 and in their final game against Basingstoke the side started well.

A strong defence limited Basingstoke and Watford opened up a lead.

Goalkeeper Karan Basu scored his first goal for the Under-18s as Watford ran out 5-2 winners.

It sealed their place in the top four and ensured they will be in action in Liverpool for the next stage of the competition