Swimmer

news from the british swimming site:

Five-time champions Lancaster will be looking for a fourth win in a row when they compete at the British Water Polo Championships in Manchester this weekend.

Lancaster men’s team, who won the competition in 1999, 2000 and every year since 2003, are hoping to perform in a strong field where any of their three opponents – Rotherham, Bristol and Cheltenham – could pose a threat to the title.

In the women’s event, defending champions Sheffield face Manchester, Liverpool and Hammersmith Penguins.

Lancaster men’s captain Chris Hartley is realistic about his team’s chances.

“There is always pressure on the team to win and reach the highest standards, but with such strong competition it can go either way,” he said.

“In the preliminaries last weekend, Cheltenham looked very strong. They’re a young up-and-coming team so they may be a threat.

“It’s all about winning the games, and if we can do that we could take the title again. It depends who performs best on the day.”

Despite their training pool closing for refurbishment at the end of 2005, and a couple of players missing, Lancaster’s performance last year leads Hartley to believe they could win again.

“We had a depleted squad last year and we were down to our bare bones, so it was great to pull through and secure the win,” he said.

“Most of us have been playing together since we were 16 and as we’re now 30-odd, that makes quite a number of years.

“It’s difficult to predict the winner as every team is in for a chance.”


The British Water Polo Championships take place from 25-26 February at the Manchester Aquatic Centre. Semi finals take place on Saturday from 1.30pm and finals take place Sunday from 9.30am.

In the women’s event, gold medallists will be nominated to the European Champions Cup and silver and bronze medallists will be nominated for the LEN Trophy.

In the men’s event, the top two finishers will be nominated for the Champions League and teams finishing third and fourth will be nominated for the LEN Trophy.