EYES ON THE PRIZE FOR THE TIGERS

While Balmain may be Australia’s oldest water polo club, that hasn’t  stopped them from producing some great young talent.

Dual Olympian and former captain of the Aussies Sharks, Nathan Thomas, will Coach the Balmain Men’s side , admitting his Club is proud to be producing such a depth of talent...

“We’ve got lots of great young talent coming through the ranks in every position, from goalkeepers to centre backs,” Thomas said.

“As a coach I’m pretty pleased with the roster and the players we’ve got - it’s important for a team to have diversity with different skills and personalities and we’ve been able to do that.

“We’ve got a couple of weeks of training left, and we’re focusing on doing the best we can. We don’t have flying ambitions.

“It’s all about helping people understand the game plan and their responsibilities. If they can execute that, the outcome is going to be the best it can be. Most of the time that’s going to be what it takes to be successful,” he said.

With the ongoing refurbishment of their home pool, Dawn Fraser Baths, Balmain have worked with club naming rights sponsor University of Technology Sydney (UTS) on some other training methods.

“We’re really lucky to have UTS as a partner, and Danielle Spitty has led the way in how we get UTS involved in our water polo programs,’ Thomas said.

“They’ve provided us with a great gym, and gym classes, so we’ve been breaking down into smaller groups to work on conditioning.

“And when we get pool time we make sure we use it as effectively as possible. The benefit of AWL this year is that we’re allowed to take a 15 player roster.

“We’ve got depth in every position and will be taking the opportunity to rest players and hopefully at the end we’re vying for the best position we can achieve,” he said.

Thomas’ mantra as a coach is all about culture, and it’s something that he’s been working on with the Balmain boys.

“Culture is at the heart of everything and I’m all about empowering people to achieve for the team, and themselves.

“People will make mistakes, and my job is to help them learn from them. If we keep encouraging the senior guys, and fostering the young talent the opportunities for them will come,” he said.

While his focus will be on leading the men to hopeful success, Thomas will be keeping a close eye on the women’s competition, where his daughter Nioka will pull on the black and gold togs for Balmain.

“It’s exciting to watch your kids play with your club, I’m looking forward to watching Nioka and the Balmain girls play.

“I’m a big fan of Danielle (Spitty) and the way she leads the girls. There’s some wonderful players in that team - I love watching them play,” he said.

After the AWL, Thomas will be involved with the Balmain Australian Youth Water Polo Championships teams.

“It’s a unique experience - we don’t often get the chance to do something like this. I’ll be in Brisbane for three weeks with the Youth Champs and AWL.

“Creating experiences like that for coaches, referees, admin and players as well - you get this sort of everyone’s there experience. There’s a lot of learning that will happen, it’s just going to be a wonderful opportunity for the water polo community,” he said.

The 2021 Australian Waterpolo League will kick off in Brisbane on Wednesday 31 March, with teams battling it out across seven days of competition before the all important finals at Brisbane Aquatic Centre on Wednesday 7 April.

The 2021 Australian Waterpolo League is a COVID Safe event in compliance with QLD Health guidelines.

For tickets to the 2021 Australian Waterpolo League - click here

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