SYDNEY UNI LIONS READY TO ROAR IN 2021 AWL

The Sydney Uni Lions come into the Australian Waterpolo League united under one club structure for the men’s and women’s team and with plenty of roar about.

One of the most competitive Clubs in the AWL, both their men’s and women’s sides will be one’s to watch this season.

Tokyo Olympic hopeful and Captain of the Sydney Men’s side Anthony Hrysanthos, said the team are raring to get out there and play against the best.

“We’re looking good and feeling confident. We’ve had a good block of training and games in the Sydney Super League which has set us up nicely and we have been able to keep a lot of our team together which is good.

“We’ve been pretty lucky that our training group is large, so we’ve always had that mix of young players pushing through and older guys who’ve been around for a while.

“With the kids being in  Brisbane for the Australian Youth Water Polo Championships as well - it’s the highest levels of competition all coming together in one place. And for us to put together some games for them to watch is also amazing,” Hrysanthos said.

Sydney Uni Lions Women’s captain Keesja Gofers echoed Hrysanthos comments, adding that her team is eager to get underway.

“We’re really excited for the 2021 season - we’re ready and raring to go,” Gofers said,

“Obviously with last season being cut short, we’re planning to pick up where we left off,” she said.

The nature of the tournament style competition is something that Gofers said will be a good learning experience.

“You can learn so much from game to game and having games back to back like that we’re going to grow as a team so quickly.

“We can focus 100% on the water polo, spending time together and not having other commitments.

“It’s also a good opportunity for our younger players to get that tournament style experience at a high level under their belt,” she said.

As a member of the Aussie Stingers Olympic squad, Gofers said it will be good to replicate that high performance environment.

“Getting the week-long tournament similar to what we do in international competition is something we have missed due to COVID-19,” Gofers said.

“You have to be 100% focused on the game at hand, and as soon as it’s over you have to focus on what’s next.

“This really replicates what we will be experiencing at the Olympics, and it’s a challenge I’m looking forward to,” she 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.

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