Aussie Sharks take 6th place finish at the FINA World Championships

The Australian men’s water polo team have finished sixth at the FINA World Championships, with the top six finish showing positive signs ahead of Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

While the final match didn’t quite go the way the Aussie Sharks had planned, going down to reigning Olympic champions Serbia 9-13, the Aussies can take plenty of confidence away from the tournament.

Head Coach Elvis Fatovic said overall he is pleased with what he saw from his side throughout the tournament, just one year out from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

“I am happy with the tournament except for a few disappointments in the quarterfinal.

“Today we didn’t show up for the first quarter and then played well for two and a half quarters. 

“We played super soft and didn’t shoot two or three shots into the cage. We didn’t play well at the start and then played more aggressively while they played less aggressively,” said Fatovic.

Triple Olympian Richie Campbell admitted the Aussie Sharks left their run in today’s match too late. 

“We can’t let them (Serbia) get away with six goals. We started poorly and they killed us in the end. It was a bit of a wake-up call. 

“We certainly prepared for the game, but mentally we were not there. We showed we can put in the effort (9-7 advantage in last three quarters), but we have to do that from the start,” said Campbell. 

The Aussie Sharks let the Serbians get away with a 6-1 lead at the end of the first quarter, the reigning Olympic champions capitalising on a slow start from the Sharks. 

But the second quarter saw the Aussie Sharks fight back with a vengeance, their solid defence keeping Serbia to just three goals while claiming two of their own. 

After half time the Aussie Sharks were back in a big way, outscoring the Serbians in both quarters. But with the lead set up well from Serbia in that first period, it was always going to be a tough challenge to come back from. 

The top six finish at the world titles for the Australians combined with their bronze medal at the recent World League Super Final, are all good signs just one year out from the next Olympic Games.

SERBIA 13 AUSTRALIA 9

Classification 5-6

Quarters: 6-1, 3-2, 1-2, 3-4

Extra man: SRB: 5/10. AUS: 4/10.

Penalties: SRB: 1/1. AUS: 1/1.

AUSTRALIA: Joel Dennerley, Richard Campbell (1), George Ford (1), Joseph Kayes (1), Nathan Power, Lachlan Edwards (1), Aidan Roach, Aaron Younger (2), Andrew Ford (2), Timothy Putt, Rhys Howden, Blake Edwards (1), Anthony Hrysanthos. Coach: Elvis Fatovic.