Younger, Power and Edwards sign to new European clubs

KAP7 Aussie Sharks captain Aaron Younger and teammates Nathan Power and Lachy Edwards recently announced moves to new European clubs, with Younger signing a multi-year deal with Italian Club Pro Recco, Power signing with Spanish Club CN Barcelona and Edwards making the move CE Mediterrani, another Barcelona based club.

Both KAP7 Aussie Sharks players have made a name for themselves on the international stage, playing in European leagues for a number of years.

Younger made the move to Europe in 2010, playing in the Croatian and Hungarian national leagues and becoming the first Australian to feature in two winning Champions League teams.

For the last three seasons he has been based in Hungary, with powerhouse Ferencváros, but will next season make the move to Italy to play for renowned world class Pro Recco.

“Moving to Pro Recco is definitely an exciting move for me and my family,” Younger said.

“It was a tough decision to leave Hungary, as everything had been great here so far, but we felt that playing for (Pro) Recco is a unique opportunity to experience pressure and an environment in which winning is an expectation of the club.

“After playing for so many years in Hungary, I felt it was time for a new experience and moving to Italy is definitely going to be a new challenge and one that excites me.

“Italy is a beautiful country and Recco is a lovely coastal town, so my family and I are definitely looking forward to our time there soaking up the local culture,” he said.

For Power, he has been a part of the Croatian national water polo league since 2016 with Jadran Split, but from next season will play with Barcelona.

“The move to Barcelona is very exciting. I still remember back in 2013 we had a World Championships there, my first one for Australia actually, and at the time I thought that would be a great place to live in,” Power said.

“Changing scenery and changing culture is something that I’m looking forward to along with the challenge of playing at a new club.

“The European leagues and clubs are all so different, but the team they’ve assembled in Barcelona is one that I’m excited to be a part of,” he said.

“While I am looking forward to being back in Europe, I have enjoyed spending some quality time with my family in Sydney.”

“Since I made the move to Europe it’s something that I don’t get to do that often, so it’s been a good opportunity to spend time with my family,” he said.

25-year-old Edwards has been playing for Drummoyne Devils in the Australian Waterpolo League but will next season make the move to Spain, where he will play for Barcelona based club CE Mediterrani.

"Moving to Spain is definitely going to be exciting - I haven't been there before so I'm looking forward to experiencing the culture and playing in a professional water polo league," Edwards said.

"I'm also looking forward to playing for CE Mediterrani Head Coach Jahzeel Martinez - it's always good to experience new coaching styles and it will also be good to learn from other players in my team but also in opposition sides.

"Being able to get more high level games in with professional teams around Europe will be great in preparation for Tokyo, I'll be able to focus on playing water polo soleyl in the professional league in Spain," he said.

For the trio, the move comes ahead of the next Olympic Games in Tokyo which have been delayed until 2021 due to COVID-19 pandemic.

The KAP7 Aussie Sharks have commenced returning to training across the country, albeit in different formats depending on which State they are based in. More updates on the return training and playing for high performance squads will be made in the coming weeks.