19&U NATIONAL CHAMPIONS SET TO BE CROWNED THIS WEEK

Water Polo Australia is preparing to host the 19&U National State Championships this week, bringing together the best junior players from across the country to compete against each other for the national title.

The 19&U Female National State Championships will be played at Caulfield Grammar School in Melbourne, with Pymble Ladies College to host the 19&U Male National State Championships.

10 teams will vie for the Female National Championships crown, including the New Zealand Junior women’s team and Youth Barbarians, composed of members of the Australian Youth Women’s squad.

Queensland Gold 19&U Coach Georgina Kovacs-Muller said representing your state is an honour her team don’t take lightly.

“Representing your state is a privilege and a fantastic opportunity to play high level water polo against quality competition,” Kovacs-Muller said.

“For us, having two Queensland teams competing provides exposure to another layer of athletes, which is crucial to keep healthy numbers in the sport at that age.

“We’re looking forward to playing smart water polo, moulding the strengths of each individual player to a well functioning unit, and having fun while doing so.

“We’ll take it one step at a time and hopefully present as a quality opposition to all teams,” she said.

South Australia 19&U Women’s Head Coach and Sydney 2000 Olympian Eddie Denis said his team are looking forward to the challenge of National State Championships.

“Our team is excited to play some high level games at this time of year, and we will be looking at this competition as a preparation event for the 2023 Australian Waterpolo League season,” Denis said.

“This will be a great opportunity for the strongest possible 19&U teams to compete against each other…the state based competition format has in the past produced really high level finals games and helped prepare our players for high pressure international competitions.

“At the National State Championships, we want to learn and grow throughout the competition, and play our best games at the end,” he said.

The mens’ competition will also feature the New Zealand Junior men’s team and Australian Youth Barbarians, with eight teams in contention for the national title.

NSW 19&U Head Coach and Australian Junior Men’s Head Coach Vedran Cirkovic said his team are looking forward to playing some high level water polo.

“The team is very excited to play, we have a good group of boys that have been playing well with each other for a while now and finally can put everything we have been working on to the test this weekend at the National State Championships,” Cirkovic said. 

“The team can't wait to compete against the best in our country once again. It is a good opportunity for the players to play against some of the top players in the country from the same age group. 

“Good luck to all the other teams competing - it’s going to be an exciting competition,” he said.

19&U Men’s ACT/TAS Head Coach Ryan McDermott said playing opportunities such as the National State Championships are invaluable for his team.

“The team is really excited to be playing on the national stage again at the National State Championships,” McDermott said.

“For many, it’s almost been 12 months since they played at Summer Slam, so it will be great for them to have some water time against strong competition.

“For a smaller state, it’s great our athletes are given opportunities like this to play against opponents they normally don’t see very often.

“It’s also great to be playing against international opposition in New Zealand which provides a unique opportunity,” he said.

The 19&U National State Championships will be livestreamed via Kommunity TV.

To watch the men’s competition - click here

To watch the women’s competition - click here