WATER POLO: The Aussie Sharks hope a culture and playing style built on steely defence will propel them into the top six when they begin their FINA World Championships water polo campaign in Kazan, Russia next week.
The Australian men’s team kick off their world championships assault with a clash against Japan at 430am (AEST) on Tuesday, before further group stage games against European powerhouses Montenegro (Thursday 30/7 at 1230am) and Serbia (Friday 31/7 at 710pm AEST).
It is a tough draw for Australia – Montenegro are ranked fourth in the world and the Serbs ranked one – but they have shown over the last few years that their new intensity, especially when not in possession, can be a challenge to any team in the world.
Aussie Sharks star Aaron Younger, who over the last four years has developed into one of the world’s best players whilst plying his trade professionally in water polo strongholds Hungary and Croatia, said the defensive performance of his team would dictate their end result.
“Our main focus and key will most definitely be our defence,” Younger said.
“Our defence has been our focus point for a long time now and is a very strong point in our game. I believe if we are able to effectively run our defence as we can, and have become recognised for, then we will have a very good chance of reaching our goals throughout the tournament.”
Those goals for this tournament are broad but Younger said a top six finish or better – Australia’s best men’s world championships result was fourth in Perth in 1998 – is within the Sharks’ sights.
“To put a finishing position as a goal can sometimes be hard when there are so many variables that go into a tournament like this but realistically we will be looking for an above top six finish,” the 23-year-old said.
“But I believe our bigger focus will be on just playing consistently to our systems and performing at a top level, the way we have been training and practising for years now. In doing this the results will hopefully take care of themselves.”
The Australian team has a blend of youth and experience, with three dual Olympians joined by four other London Olympians, including Younger, but the Western Australian believes experience gained in Kazan could be invaluable in Rio in 12 months.
“This really is the largest stepping stone leading towards Rio,” Younger said.
“There are few competitions that can even compare with the Olympics and especially with the age of our team, having big tournament experience like this adds immeasurable benefits. I think the whole team will be looking at this tournament as a real test and preparation tool for Rio next year.”
WATER POLO AUSTRALIA
