WORLD AQUATICS WOMEN'S U16 WATER POLO CHAMPIONSHIPS

BRONZE MEDAL MATCH: AUSTRALIA 13 d CROATIA 10

Our Australian U16 team won the bronze medal at the World Aquatics Women’s U16 Water Polo Championships overnight, triumphing over European powerhouse Croatia to secure a fairytale finish.

Sienna Walker was the first to score for Australia, netting the ball after a fantastic long ball from keeper Caroline Healy.

Croatia were quick to get a goal of their own, with both teams going goal for goal in the first quarter until Croatia scored an additional goal in the final minute, settling the score 5-4 in favour of the European side at the end of the first eight minutes.

A brilliant second quarter from the Aussies saw them score three goals while keeping their opponents scoreless, with Abigail Oates, Ali McCarthy and Ellie Sefton all netting goals.

Australia outscored their opponents once again in the third quarter, this time at four goals to three, giving them an 11-8 advantage going into the final quarter.

With the crowd and Australian supporters creating an electric atmosphere, Sienna Walker made it on the scoresheet once again, this time with an inspired shot to the top right corner within the first 20 seconds of the final quarter.

Two goals from Croatia saw the European team close the gap slightly, before Australia cemented the result with another goal, this time from captain Emmerson McEwan with less than a minute and a half to go.

"All our preparations really paid off," said McEwan after the match.

"This tournament has really seen us come together as a team, and it's amazing to get this win in the end.

"It has been such an unreal experience, the enviornment here is just so alive and it's been so great to be a part of," she said.

The team would like to thank all of their supporters both in the stands and at home for the consistent outpouring of well wishes throughout the tournament.

Water Polo Australia would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of the clubs and club coaches for supporting our 16&U athletes on this journey.

Claudia Booth (UQ, QLD), Sara Connors (UQ, QLD), Zara Cooke (SNB Breakers, NSW), Caroline Healy (Melbourne Collegians, VIC), Amelie Hoefel (Mermaids, QLD), Georgia Joosep (Mermaids, QLD), Ali McCarthy (Polo Bears, QLD), Emmersen McEwan (Polo Bears, QLD), Kiera Mironova (Sydney Uni, NSW), Abigail Oates (Sydney Uni, NSW), Isabelle O'Connor (Polo Bears, QLD), Alannah Paul (SNB Breakers, NSW), Ellie Sefton (UQ, QLD), Lucy Stuart (Mermaids, QLD), Sienna Walker (Melville, WA)

REPLAY

SEMIFINAL: SPAIN 14 d AUSTRALIA 7

Our Aussie U16's went down fighting In Manisa at the World Aquatics Women’s U16 Water Polo Championships in their Semifinal against Spain overnight.

A penatly goal saw Spain the first team on the scoreboard, with the European side netting another three goals before the end of the first quarter. Determined to keep themselves in the game, Australia scored twice in quick succession towards the end of the opening eight minutes to keep the goal difference to two.

Kiera Mironova scored Australia's only goal of the second quarter off a penalty, with the team yet to score again until the final quarter.

With the score 11-3 going into the fourth quarter, the Australians showed their resilience and determination, outscoring Spain 4-3 over the last eight minutes.

Despite the final score 14-7 in favour of Spain, the Australian side made their country proud with their world class performance.

They will take the pool one final time in Turkey this evening, having earned themselves a place in the Bronze medal match against Croatia.

REPLAY

COMING UP: Australia vs Croatia, Friday 5 July, 1:30am AEST

QUARTERFINAL: AUSTRALIA 13 d ITALY 8

A huge win overnight for our Aussies at the World Aquatics Women’s U16 Water Polo Championships sees them continue their dream run and advance to the Semifinals.

The first to win the ball, Australia came out firing, becoming the first team to score when captain Emmersen McEwan netted the ball within the opening 25 seconds of the match.

The green and gold team scored another two goals in quick succession before Italy began their charge, scoring three of their own.

The first quarter finished 4-3 in favour of the Australians following a goal in the rop right hand corner of the net from Abigail Oates in the final minute.

The teams battled it our over the next two quarters, scoring an equal amount of goals in both - one each in the second quarter and four each in the third.

With the score 9-8 in favour of the Aussies at the start of the final eight minutes, there was little seperating the teams as they swam for the ball.

A penalty goal from Emmersen McEwan after a red card for Italy kickstarted the Australian momentum, with goals following from Sara Connors, Sienna Walker and Ellie Sefton.

Managing to keep Italy scoreless in the final quarter, Australia finished the game on top, securing their place in an upcoming Semifinal against Spain early tomorrow morning (AEST).

REPLAY

COMING UP: Australia vs Spain, Thursday 4 July, 4am AEST

GAME 3: AUSTRALIA 13 d UKRAINE 3

Australia will play in a Quarterfinal this evening after their momentum at the World Aquatics Women’s U16 Water Polo Championships 2024 continued overnight with an impressive 16-0 win over Ukraine in the Crossover stage of the tournament.

Australian Emmerson McEwan was the first to score, with fellow Queenslander Georgia Joosep also netting a ball in the first six minutes.

The winning side picked up their pace throughout the game, scoring three goals in the second quarter and four goals in the third to make the score 9-0 in favour of Australia ahead of the final quarter.

The teams hard work continued to pay off in the final quarter, with an impressive six minutes seeing an additional seven goals scored, the last of which was scored in the last five seconds of the game by Amelie Hoefel.

Ellie Sefton was awarded player of the match.

REPLAY

COMING UP: Australia vs Italy, Wednesday 3 July, 4am AEST

GAME 2: AUSTRALIA 13 d TURKEY 3

The Australia 16&U Women delivered another convincing win over Turkey at the World Aquatics Women’s U16 Water Polo Championships 2024 overnight, advancing to the Crossover stage with back-to-back wins under their belts.

Already 3-0 up at the end of the first quarter, the #Aussies continued to dominate throughout the second, swimming in after 12 minutes of play with the socreboard 6-1 in their favour.

Some great shots in the second half of the game saw the team continue to pull away from their opponents and tournament hosts, with the final score a decisive 13-3.

Vice Captain Sienna Walker says the team is feeling prepared and excited after the first few games of the tournament.

"Our preparations before the tournament with Greece and Hungary helped us learn crucial skills that have already helped us this tournament," said Walker.

"By experiencing different styles of play we've been able to more effectively adapt to our opposition, something that has helped us overcome Turkey these last few games.

"The team have become a family and we are all proud to play for Australia - we are so excited for the rest of the tournament and to hopefully make our country proud," she said.

REPLAY

COMING UP: Australia vs Ukraine, Tuesday 2 July, 3am AEST

GAME 1: AUSTRALIA 11 d TURKEY 2

A fantastic start to the World Aquatics Women's U16 Water Polo Championships for our Australian team saw them claim an 11-2 victory over Turkey on the first day of competition.

A slow start to the game saw the Australian Women's 16&U team the only side to net a single goal in the first quarter.

The momentum picked up in the second quarter, with three goals in quick succession from the Aussies seeing the scoreline read 4-0 in their favour.

A goal from Turkey in both the third and fourth quarter was not enough to see them catch up with the green and gold side, with the Australian team swimming in at the end of the game victorious after scoring another seven goals in the second half of the game.

Sara Connors was named World Aquatics Player of the Match and was happy to see the team claim their first win.

"It was great to come away with a good win against the home country, Turkey, in our first match," said Connors.

"We were a little nervous to start but really found our rhythm as the game went on. We play Turkey again in our next match so we'll work just as hard and hopefully come away with another win," she said.

Prior to their first game on Friday night, the team were presented with their game caps by their parents in an unofficial yet special ceremony. The team then presented a small gift of their own to their parents to thank them for their support.

The team were also very excited to recieve a special gift of handmade soap in Australian colours by Paula Kerr-Hay and Alison Barry-Jones whom they would like to thank for their support.

REPLAY

COMING UP: Australia vs Turkey, Monday 1 July, 3am AEST

For full results - click here. 

Australia: Claudia Booth (UQ, QLD), Sara Connors (UQ, QLD), Zara Cooke (SNB Breakers, NSW), Caroline Healy (Melbourne Collegians, VIC), Amelie Hoefel (Mermaids, QLD), Georgia Joosep (Mermaids, QLD), Ali McCarthy (Polo Bears, QLD), Emmersen McEwan (Polo Bears, QLD), Kiera Mironova (Sydney Uni, NSW), Abigail Oates (Sydney Uni, NSW), Isabelle O'Connor (Polo Bears, QLD), Alannah Paul (SNB Breakers, NSW), Ellie Sefton (UQ, QLD), Lucy Stuart (Mermaids, QLD), Sienna Walker (Melville, WA), Georgina Kovacs-Muller (Head Coach), Chloe Wilcoxx (Assistant Coach)

Watch live: click here 

Image Credit: World Aquatics