On a haunting Halloween Eve, BLWP welcomed Southampton to The Den aka Fortress Poplar. Despite some tumultuous pre-match build up in which Chundy Shark started to develop Piscivores trade mark vein, the boys were quietly confident in getting a result. After the team became Ultras for the women last week, the energy to start the season strong was through the roof.
Some lovely new tadpoles have spawned into the team to welcome in the new season. Tadpole Adam, Balint, Dmitrious, Preston, Phil and Vlas gave the team some new and much needed depth. Grunion too graced Southampton with his presence, returning to the pool after being the lead goal scorer against Essex last year.
Southampton were off to a winning start considering they had successfully found our pool, something their women’s team had not managed to achieve the week before. The whistle blew and Lumpfish was back to his strengths winning the swim off and dramatically passing the pool to the opposition. However taking inspiration from Water Aid and the team were white on rice and steadfast in defending the deep end. Tadpole Balint quickly adapted to his role at pit D and pocked his counterpart attacker. Despite the whole population of Southampton standing in front of shallow end goal, Lumpfish sent in a bouncer from the right wing to take the lead. There was some confusion in the ranks and Southampton were mounting attack after attack. Soon Chundy Shark came into his own utilising his lack of height and leg strength allowing himself to be embarrassingly lobbed and concurring a shot straight at him. Should’ve used his head… The score at the end of the quarter 2-1 to Southampton. Successful quarter considering we were attacking the shallow end.
Now attacking the deep end, the boys were ready to put Southampton to the sword. Tadpole Preston entered the pool setting up several opportunities to score, but we decided it would be more pleasurable to repeatedly hit the bar from closer ranger shot after shot than actually putting the ball into the back of the net. Southampton decided to give us a helping had by giving us a penalty in which Tadpole Christian placed it top bins. This lit a fire in him as he scored 2 more this quarter with his trademark back shot. Tadpole Adam also netted his first goal for Bart’s after coming so close earlier that quarter. Shoutout to tadpole Vlas who got in the pool for his first water polo game and covered both pits. Score at the end of the quarter 5-3 to Bart’s.
All we had to do in the third quarter was keep it tight and the game would be ours. A monumental defensive effort from us, prevented Southampton from registering a goal all quarter attacking the deep end. HUGE!!!!! Tadpole Balint then broke the straw that broke the camels back. All ready infected by our motto if in doubt sling it out, tadpole Balint did the impossible and we scored yet again in the shallow in. We could have had even more with several missed man up opportunities. Score 6-3
The game was surely all ours now as we were attacking the deep end now. Barney bear gave their opposition pit some ptsd from last year by completing moving him out of the D. It was frantic though and Southampton mounted a mini comeback scoring 2 more goals. Tadpole Cole aka Captain America settled our nerves bouncing in a brute of a shot from the wing. The flood gates opened and tadpole Balint and Adam getting both got their second. Southampton did respond with a goal from their own after their ball bounced as high as Everest into the back of our net. Meanwhile Tadpole Phil and Grunion had entered the pool doing very well to neutralise the opposition wingers. Off one last counter tadpole Christian scored yet again bagging 4 from the game.
Final result 10-6
MOM : Tadpole Balint for playing out of position and not giving the opposition pit a chance, while getting the all important goal in the third quarter.
