Qualification cross-overs

Israel 19 Kazakhstan 8

All photos courtesy of: Jo Kleindl/DSV/World Aquatics

Israel was never going to be headed in this match and during the entire four matches only trailed by a goal for two minutes to South Africa in the opening encounter on day one. Israel has the tools to contest the finals in Long Beach, which it has now qualified for.

With players of the ilk of Shunit Strugo, Maria Bogachenko, Alma Yaacobi and Tahel Levi to name a few, Israel will make a mark on the world of women’s water polo. Today, the quarters fell 3-1, 4-2, 6-2 and 6-3 in Israel’s favour. It was lovely to watch Veronika Kordonskaia produce a push shot on counter and Noa Sasova outmuscle two defenders for a centre-forward goal.

Match heroes:
Ayelet Peres, with nine saves in goal, was named best in pool. With 26 saves for the week in such a dominant team, her workload was made even more remarkable by the fact she shared goals with Michal Kats and Natali Kurtsev who took 14 between them. Bogachenko (above) with five goals and 13 for the week, was the highest scorer. Team-mate Strugo (below) whipped in a backhand from wide left of the post in the final second for four goals and a magnificent 20 for the tournament. On the other side, Viktoriya Khritankova kept her team in the play with the first four goals — 10 for the week — but even she could not stop the Israeli onslaught.

Turning point:
The six Israel goals in the third period that changed the scoreboard from 7-5 to 13-5.

Stats don’t lie:
Israel shot 31 times to Kazakhstan’s 24; converted three from eight on extra to Kazakhstan’s three from seven; rattled in six penalty goals to none and made 11 steals to four.

Bottom line:
Israel was the revelation in Berlin and it will be a tantalising wait to see how it performs in Long Beach. Kazakhstan will now set its sights on the World Aquatics Championships and the Asian Games with a lot more experience for the newcomers in the team.

New Zealand 16 South Africa 3

Like Israel, there was never any doubt that New Zealand would come through and collect the second and last qualification berth for Long Beach. By keeping South Africa scoreless for 15 long minutes, the Kiwis were able to come from 3-1 to an awesome 15-2.

The first quarter was tight as New Zealand’s first goal did not come until 2:45, followed by the second at 2:03. Bernadette Doyle made it 3-0 before South Africa’s Kelsey White drilled one from the top for 3-1 at 4:12.

Halftime arrived with New Zealand 6-1 ahead and then it was 12-1 at the final break. The score mounted to 15-1 and in a flurry of penalty shots, Amber Penney gained South Africa’s second goal while New Zealand converted three from the five-metre line. It was Penney who closed the match with a missile from nine metres.

Match heroes:
Kiwi goalkeeper Jessica Milicich (above), who plays for Spandau in the German league and had many of her team-mates in the stands cheering her along, was named best in pool. She made seven saves in her three quarters in the water in what was the cleanest sheet of the tournament. Emmerson Houghton scored four goals and Doyle three, giving them 14 goals each for the week.

Turning point:
The first 12 minutes when South Africa was scoreless and New Zealand three ahead.

Stats don’t lie:
New Zealand went 31-17 on shots; three from six on extra to one from one; four penalties to one and stole the ball 12 times to 11 — a good stat for South Africa. Penney scored twice for South Africa and nine for the week. Ruby Versfeld, who was kept scoreless today, finished with 12 goals.

Bottom line:
New Zealand managed to close out South Africa from anywhere near the six-metre zone, except for the one penalty foul. That was a magnificent effort and it shows what will be needed against the top-line nations in Long Beach. South Africa did well to make the finals and will draw strength from that for the upcoming two World Aquatics Championships and the Paris Olympic Games.

Classification 5-6

Germany 15 Uzbekistan 8

Germany headed home the winner, but it took some time to wrest control and shrug off a determined Uzbekistan. The match was tied at one, two, three and four and that was a minute inside the third period — 4-4. A triple from Germany forced a chink of light to become an open door as the momentum raged until the 9-5 three-quarter advantage.

It was pushed out to 11-5 and 14-6 with goals traded for the 15-8 final scoreline.

Match heroes:
Gesa Deike, who won the best-player award and Aylin Fry scored four goals apiece for Germany with Fry netting three of the first five German goals. Deike had a triple in the third period (13 for the week) with a pair lifting the match to 7-4. Sokhibakhon Sayfiddinova also scored four, giving her 14 for the tournament as her team’s best scorer.

Turning point:
The German triple to lift from 4-4 to 7-4 in the third and then the shutout fourth period.

Stats don’t lie:
Germany took 32 shots to Uzbekistan’s 23; won the extra-man count with three from six to three from nine and made seven steals to five. Germany converted its sole penalty attempt and Uzbekistan went two from two.

Bottom line:
Both teams have big agendas this year with Germany out to qualify for the European Championships and Uzbekistan to contest the Asian Games. This tournament would have helped both teams set their sights a little higher.

Classification 7-8

Great Britain 10 Ukraine 4

A four-goal final quarter is what separated these two defiant teams. The result was still in doubt at the final break, although Great Britain was always leading the match. From 1-1 it became 3-1 to Great Britain by the quarter break and then 5-1 by halfway through the second quarter.

The momentum swung Ukraine’s way, picking up the last goal of the half on penalty. Niamh Nurthen opened the second-half scoring three minutes in, gaining her third goal. Then Anastasiia Shevchenko set in one of the longest goals of the tournament, followed less than a minute late by Oleksandra Belinska’s extra-man goal to close the match to 6-4 three minutes from the final break.

Kathy Rogers, who scored the opening goal for Great Britain, swept in a centre-forward goal and another from top left to make it 8-4, draining the energy from Ukraine. Rogers shot her fourth from the same position as the last for 9-4 at 3:03 and Nurthen plundered her fourth from the same position on extra to close the match at 10-4.

Match heroes:
Rogers (above) claimed the player-of-the-match award and Nurthen was equally handy, both scoring four goals. Anastasiia Zelenko scored twice with one penalty goal.

Turning point:
Firstly, the four goals from 1-1 to 5-1 and secondly a shut-out final quarter and four goals to Great Britain.

Stats don’t lie:
Great Britain took 31 shots to 19; converted four from six on extra-man attack to one from three and made nine steals to four. Ukraine scored the only penalty of the match.

Bottom line:
It has been a long time between drinks for the Britons, not having played at World Aquatics or European level for nine years. Hopefully that drought has ended as they now seek European Championship qualification. For Ukraine, it was a welcome respite from the troubles at home and a first chance to see this level of water polo.

Final Classifications

Israel and New Zealand qualify for World Cup Finals. Kazakhstan and South Africa, losing finalists. 5th, Germany. 6th, Uzbekistan. 7th, Great Britain. 8th, Ukraine.