Hungary, Spain, Greece and Italy conquer group stage

Group C

HUNGARY 21 ARGENTINA 14

Hungary held all the cards and romped into the quarterfinals where it should be a mere formality to making the semifinals such is the team’s superiority. Croatia supplied the only resistance, winning 12-10 while today’s outing was just practice for the main event.

Hungary won the first quarter 7-1, restricting Argentina so much that the penalty goal scored was the only shot on target from the South Americans. Vince Vigvari, captain of the Hungarian team that recently won the U20 World Championships, scored a hat-trick in the last three minutes.

It was different in the second quarter as Argentina scored three goals to five, one in particular spectacular as Esteban Corsi rose high in deep left to take a long cross-field pass to score just 25 seconds after his first score. Adam Nagy collected the last Hungarian scores from the left and one from very deep. Hungary turned at 12-5. 

Argentina matched it with Hungary in the third period, trading goals to 14-7 and adding an eighth through Tomas Tilatti on extra. Goals were again traded before Hungary levelled the period at four through a Zoltan Pohl penalty shot just seconds from the buzzer. Gergo Fekete gained his second as did Carlos Camnasio for Argentina.

The fourth period was much the same with Argentina on an equal footing with Hungary, which was saving its energy for future encounters. Every Hungarian scored and gained valuable water time. Camnasio netted his third and Martino a second for Argentina. Nagy and Fekete both brought their tallies to three. Argentina can be proud of the 14-13 scoreline in the last three quarters.

Match Heroes:
Vince Vigvari with his four goals in only his second senior international tournament. Camnasio and Corsi scored three each for Argentina.

Turning Point:
At 7-1 by the first break, there was no turning point.

Stats Don’t Lie:
Hungary fired off 38 shots to 24; converted five from nine on extra-man attack to Argentina’s equally excellent five from eight and sent in three penalty goals to two.

Bottom Line:
Hungary wins the group, as expected, and Argentina goes to the bottom four with more confidence.

What They Said:

CORSI Esteban  ARG  Three Goals

“We felt more confident (after the 7-1 first quarter). In the first game, we played Croatia and since then we have tried to make less errors and it has improved our confidence. We started on the left foot. They showed their full capabilities. We tried to play our best. We tried the ABC of water polo against one of the best teams in the world.”

On the 14-13 scoreline for the last three quarters:
“It’s amazing. Didn’t think it was going to be like that. We tried to make more concentration on defence. They already had a big difference from the first quarter so, perhaps their foot was off the accelerator.”

CROATIA 17 JAPAN 12

Croatia claimed second place in the group with a hard-fought wrestle with Japan that was only 7-6 st halftime.

A large and parochial Japanese crowd packed into the Marine Messe B cauldron as Japan reacted to every cheer. The noise subsided when Croatia sent in the first two but the roof nearly lifted as Japan scored three straight, the first a super drive into two metres by Saiya Adachi, tipping in the pass. Two counter-attack goals followed in quick succession with Taiyo Watanabe and Yusuke Inaba were identical in their brilliance, weaving through the defenders deep right to get closer to the goalmouth before releasing the ball. Croatia scored the next two for a 4-3 lead at the first break.

When Konstantin Kharkov opened the second period, it was the turn of Croatia to go three straight. Keigo Okawa sent in a missile from well outside for 5-4, once again sending the crowd wild with delight. Goals were traded until Inaba gained his second on penalty for 7-6 at the turn.

There were 11 goals in the third period as Croatia took a firm grasp, winning the period 8-3 and moving to an unassailable 15-9, although we have seen two five-goal margins wiped to change the winner. Japan was in the play until 10-9 and Croatia seemed to turn all Japanese, doing exactly what the speedsters normally do. Croatia fired in five straight goals to steal the match from Japan with the loveliest goal an eight-metre lob from Kharkov for his third.

The final quarter was thrilling for all the activity let alone the few goals garnered. There were shots, ejections and fast breaks, including some brilliant defensive work by both teams. Adachi on counter and Watanabe from the penalty line brought Japan to  15-11 behind. However, Kharkov scored into an empty net as Katsuyuki Tanamura was out trying to steal balls, and Jerko Marinic-Kragic converted a penalty foul for 17-12.

Match Heroes:
Kharkov claimed the glory with Marko Bijac in his usual illustrious form with 11 saves. Adachi was the best scorer for Japan with four.

Turning Points:
Japan turned Croatia’s two-goal lead and Croatia turned Japan’s 3-2 lead into 5-3 by the start of the second quarter. Croatia shrugged off Japan in the third with five straight.

Stats Don’t Lie:
Croatia shot 34-33; buried five from 10 on extra-man attack and defended five from seven. All penalty shots were scored with Croatia gaining one and Japan three.

Bottom Line:
Croatia has the greater recent experience while Japan was locked down, so was expected to win, despite the protestations of the Japanese spectators.

What They Said:

KHARKOV Konstantin  CRO  Player Of The Match

“It was a hard game for us and for them it was hard, too. In the second part we started closing down their counter-attacks. We were playing at the same level as normal. This match helps us a lot. It’s good racing. Now we play Montenegro (in the crossovers) and it is a very great team.”

SUZUKI Toi  JPN  Captain

“This is the last game in the preliminary round. We have never beaten Croatia and we have been preparing to beat Croatia for some time. We were up to Croatia in the early part of the third period. The next game we want to win.”

Group D

SOUTH AFRICA 6 SPAIN 27

Spain became the second team through to the quarterfinals, closing out the group with three wins while South Africa slips into the bottom four, going winless from the three days of competition.

Spain ripped through the periods 8-2, 7-2, 8-2 and 4-0, so no real pressure heading into a rest day. The goals were spread around and from all over. Late inclusion Fran Valera made his mark with a variety of shots, finishing with five.

The biggest burst came when from 11-4 midway through the second quarter, Spain stretched the score out to 19-4 with Valera getting two and Alejandro Bustos netting twice. The best goal of the match came from South Africa’s Manqoba Bungane who received the ball bottom right, spun and twisted his way to the goal with two players heavily defending him and then smashing the ball past the goalkeeper. For 20-6. It was his team’s last goal at 2:12 in the third. Spain rolled home a comfortable winner with Valera sending in three more and Blai Mallarach another two to his first-half pair.

Match Heroes:
Valera with his five goals. Mallarach chimed in with four.

Turning Point:
Spain turning 2-1 into 6-1.

Stats Don’t Lie:
The telling factor was Spain shooting 40 times to 24. Neither side was awarded a penalty and only three major fouls were awarded with Spain scoring one and South Africa getting one from two.

Bottom Line:
Spain was tested against Serbia 16-14 and went 11-7 versus Montenegro, so the big margin against South Africa gave it a chance to test combinations and moves with no major pressure. South Africa comes up with big goals when needed and will be a real presence in the round 13-16.

What They Said:

MARTIN David  ESP  Head Coach

On playing a much lower-ranked team after two close matches:
“Sometimes it’s good to relax mentally. We’ve had two very hard games; now we have 24 hours’ rest (alluding to the day off on Sunday given to group winners) to focus on not going out of the competition in the next game — the quarterfinals. This happened in Budapest in 2017 when we lost to Russia. Since then we have always been in the semifinals. It’s important to stay there.”

BUNGANE Manqoba  RSA  Goal Scorer

On scoring a fantastic driving goal from the deep right through two defenders and the goalkeeper:
“A goal like that comes from a place of hunger and desperation. You have to take it on yourself and show respect when all the chips are down, coming from a mental attribute. Goals like that are special. You do what you can.”

On playing the world champion:
“ A match like that? To sum it up in a few words — a dream come true. It’s a learning curve. You take it on the chin and learn from experienced men.”

SERBIA 17 MONTENEGRO 15 in penalty shootout (FT: 13-13. Pens: 4-2)

Montenegro controlled almost all of the match, only to stumble at the final hurdle. From two ahead in the final quarter, Montenegro allowed Serbia to rattle in three goals, although it did take nearly five minutes. Montenegro levelled with 19 seconds left and the match went to a shootout, the first such event at a World Championship in the group stage. Normally draws are retained, but under the revised rules this year, every match must find a winner. Serbia won the shootout 4-2 for the victory.

Montenegro shot out of the blocks like a 100m track sprinter with five goals from five different players. Serbia responded with a pair and Montenegro used a sixth player to go further ahead. Nemanja Ubovic was the recipient of a short pass in front of goal to close the period’s scoring at 6-3.

Montenegro seemingly took the match by the throat when it went to 8-4 with a three-goal spurt that nullified Serbia’s 4-1 surge. However, Serbian captain Nikola Jaksic scored his third from the penalty line and Dorde Vucinic scored identical and consecutive goals to bring the match to within one at 8-7.

A pair of Montenegrin goals pushed the margin back to three with Vucinic scoring an almost impossibly deep shot from the bottom right, squeezing the ball behind the back of the goalkeeper into the far post and across the line. He accepted a short pass from the top on the left-post position for 10-9 several minutes later on extra. Montenegro used a timeout to set up Dusan Matkovic to score at 0:35 and 11-9 at the third buzzer.

Radomir Drasovic converted a penalty to close within one and at 4:58, Sava Randelovic equalised for the first time. Marko Radulovic gave Serbia the lead at 1:17 with Aleksa Ukropina responding at 0:19 from the top-right position, forcing a shootout.

Serbia won the toss and shot four straight. Montenegro hit the crossbar with the second shot and Matkovic had his shot blocked meaning no further shots were needed and Serbia had the victory.

Match Heroes:
Vukcinic was the undoubted star with his six goals and captain Jaksic had four in the bag. Matkovic scored three for Montenegro, but his team’s hero was goalkeeper Petar Tesanovic with an incredible 15 saves, with probably a large proportion in that first half.

Turning Point:
Montenegro started 5-0 and it seemed it was what was needed to give it some buffer room. But, five was not enough, as it turned out.

Stats Don’t Lie:
Serbia shot 35 to 31; converted six from eight on extra-man attack and defended six from 11. Serbia nailed both penalty attempts in regular time and Montenegro missed one of two.

Bottom Line:
Serbia is the reigning Olympic champion and reputations are important, especially when it comes to near neighbour Montenegro. Serbia takes second in the group, giving a little edge in the second round. Montenegro can still make it to the quarters.

What They Said:

STEVANOVIC Uros  SRB  Head Coach

On coming back from 5-0 down in the first quarter:
“It was a problem, but not a problem to come back. We have done this many times before.There are too many new players. Every game we play is a new experience.:

On this match being like a world final, not just a group match:
“The rivalry is big, especially since 2008 (when the countries separated as a combined nation — Serbia & Montenegro). It was like the Malaga final at the Europeans (2008). People who come to watch should enjoy this game.”

GOJKOVIC Vladimir  MNE  Head Coach

On five goals not being enough of a start:
“It was an amazing start — five shoots for five goals. We continued to play the same way. We can’t be satisfied after five goals. However, we are now looking ahead to the next game; it will be like a final.”

GROUP A

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 14 GREECE 15

The second successive match of the early session provided two fantastic encounters in which the winning team had to come back from five goals down for victory. The earlier match was for second, although you would think it was the final. This match had Greece on the back foot as World Cup bronze medallist United States of America made all the play, especially with livewire Max Irving scoring every time he touched the ball, it seemed. 

USA played catch-up to Greece in the opening quarter for 3-3. In the second, USA went 5-3, ceded one goal and then smashed home four more with Irving bringing his total to four by 7-4. Ben Hallock backhanded at centre forward for the 9-4 margin that had the USA fans screaming with delight.

The Greek revival was slight with a pair of Greek goals all that converted in the first four minutes. Hannes Daube netted his third and goals were traded with Greece getting the better of the rotation to close to 11-8 by the buzzer thanks to Efstathios Kalogeropoulos.

Greece led the scoring of traded goals until 13-11 at 3:44. Then came the last three minutes and at 2:48, it was Alexandros Papanastasiou who stepped up and drilled in a shot from deep right. Less than a minute later he repeated the shot for 13-13 — a long time since Greece was on even terms. Just as we were thinking of a shootout, Irving came good with his sixth goal at 1:25. At 1:01, Kalogeropoulos fired in the equaliser off the right-post position on extra-man attack.. Greece took a timeout to no effect. Soon after on the final attack of the match the ball was flipped to Papanastasiou, he drove and shot cross cage with teh winner, with one second on the clock. It was enough to win the group and earn a day off.

Irving plastered the Greek goal six times, but he can’t say it was enough, as his team seemingly wilted over the dying minutes.

Match Heroes:
Papanastasiou, with those magical goals to go with the one he shot to open the match scoring. He deservedly snatched the player-of-the-match award from Irving.

Turning Point:
Papanastasiou’s three goals.

Stats Don’t Lie:
Greece shot 33 to 29; converted five from 10 to USA’s five from nine and both teams buried three penalty goals.

Bottom Line:
Greece goes to the quarterfinals and USA will undoubtedly win its crossover to fight for another medal.

What They Said:

VLACHOS Theodoros  GRE  Head Coach

“It was a strange game and I told the team it was a very important game. USA would do anything and everything every time and could score and we couldn’t. It was a strange three quarters. The last quarter we knew we could play better. But why wait until the last quarter? I don’t know whether we can do that again. I am not satisfied with the match. The win, yes; but not the way we played.”

PAPANASTASIOU Alexandros  GRE  Player Of The Match

On what was going through his mind in the final three minutes when he scored three goals:
“That moment we had come close and were really tired. The mind was thinking faster than normal; concentrating on what was happening there. The last attack, I knew it was the last two seconds and I had to shoot and I took the best shot I could (match winner with one second remaining).”

After scoring the winner:
“Not many thoughts, just relief that we came back from 9-4 (halftime) and it was not for nothing, getting three points.”

IRVING Max  USA  Six Goals

“Things slipped away in the second half… attention to detail, focus. We tried to make stops on defence…”

AUSTRALIA 22 KAZAKHSTAN 6

Australia took out third place in the group with a counter-attacking victory over Kazakhstan. It was the Aussie Sharks’ first win in Fukuoka and puts them in line for a chance at making the quarterfinals.

Australia had a novelty start with seven players scoring in the first quarter with five being on counter. Kazakhstan responded with two. It was a speed-fest to start with the Aussie Sharks prowling the Kazakh defensive zone and making sure of perfect shooting. Kazakhstan scored at 1-1 and 7-2.

The second quarter was most unlike the first with Kazakhstan putting up more of a concrete wall and keeping the Sharks to three goals. Charlie Negus scored twice with the first on extra and the second needing a VAR decision for 10-2. Blake Edwards, playing his first match of the tournament, converted the penalty in between.

Kazakhstan scored twice in the third period as Australia stretched the lead to 14-4 by the final break. There was some inventive play by the Sharks, but the Kazakh defence was playing its part is slowing the Aussie onslaught.There were two more counter-attack goals and goals from brothers Lachlan Edwards and Blake Edwards, the latter with his second penalty strike.

The fourth favoured Australia even more with four unanswered goals after Eduard Tsoy started the scoring for Kazakhstan. Charlie Negus and Angus Lambie scored their third goals and Poot fired in a close-range goal just inside the final minute. Lachlan Edwards fired the last goal with a second left on the clock from the top.

Match Heroes:
Poot and Negus with their four goals in a team that had ample scorers. Poot took out the top award.

Turning Point:
Bursting from 1-1 to 7-1 had a huge bearing on the match.

Stats Don’t Lie:
Australia shot 36 to 24; converted a fantastic eight for 12 on extra-man to Kazakhstan’s four from 10. Australia netted two penalty attempts.

Bottom Line:
The first victory for Australia means it will go to the crossovers with plenty of confidence and Kazakhstan will have to battle the classifications 13-16.

What They Said:

POOT Chaz  AUS  Player Of The Match

On the feeling in the team:
“This is a great friendly group of boys. We have known each other for years.”

On the need to win this match to advance to the crossovers:
“We had to do it. We were pretty confident.”

On scoring four goals:
“Always nice to score a few goals, but it’s not for everyone.”

EDWARDS Lachlan  AUS  Three Goals

On finding himself in different positions in the pool and scoring two goals from outside:
“I’ve had to play different positions in my career, but because of my size I’ve always been put at centre. Ask any centre and they will tell you they love to shoot. With the change of coaching staff I have gone from one of the young guys to using my experience to help the young guys.”

On taking a break from the game because of injury and mental health:
“I had two knee operations, for the same injury. It was a rough year last year and I took a mental break. I was not sure of coming back,” said the man who contested the 2017 and 2019 World Championships. “I’m working full time and putting a lot back into the sport, which helps the mental focus. It’s a good refresher.”

Group B

CHINA 5 ITALY 18

World Championship silver medallist Italy took some time to warm up against China, but once in a scoring mood, it could not stop. China struggled to break through the defence despite a lot of effort. However, most effort was on trying to stop the rampant Italians.

Italy began the scoring with a pair in the second minute. China responded in the last two minutes. Francesco Condemi began his personal tidal wave on counter to start the second quarter. Dingsong Deng replied at centre forward. Luca Damonte converted extra, then Condemi went three straight before China called a timeout. Italy fired in the last two goals before halftime for 9-3. 

Goals were traded to start the third period and then Luca Marziali produced a masterclass on how to play two metres with three successive goals. The margin then blew out to 15-5 by the third-quarter buzzer. China was kept scoreless in the final period as Italy sent in three more to finish with 18 and earn a rest on Sunday before tuning up for the quarterfinals on Tuesday.

Match Heroes:
Damonte was named best in pool, scoring twice and being active all over. Francesco di Fulvio and Condemi scored four each with Condemi a complete delight. For China, Zhongxian Chen scored twice and goalkeeper Honghui Wu dragged down 10 saves.

Turning Point:
The Condemi factor in the second quarter.

Stats Don’t Lie:
Italy shot 34 to 19; converted four from eight on extra-man attack and defended two from four. Neither team gained a penalty foul.

Bottom Line:
Italy is No 2 in the world, so the victory was expected. Now it builds for the quarterfinals. China goes to the classification round 13-16.

What They Said:

DI FULVIO Francesco  ITA  Goal Scorer 

On the benefits of today’s match:
“We have prepared for the quarterfinals. Everybody thinks this kind of match  is not good — Canada and China — but they are very important. We have to improve our game and we have four days to prepare and watch games. We are ready now, finally, for the real matches.”

On what the team will do between now and the quarterfinals:
“Will will train twice a day with gym warm-up, video analysis and watch the matches in two days (crossovers). We are glad to be here. Everybody is watching us at home. It is an honour to be here.”

DAMONTE Luca  ITA  Player Of The Match

“It’s not so easy to play this match as we were thinking of the next match (quarterfinal), which is most important. We tried to do some new tactics so we will be ready for Serbia (should Serbia win its crossover).”

FRANCE 15 CANADA 11

France came through when it was needed and that was to beat Canada for second place in the group stage. 

From a tight first quarter to a four-goal margin just before halftime. France was looking the better until Nicolas Constantin-Bicari went on counter and trimmed it to three, which was an excellent lead for the French. France led 5-4 at the quarter break and began to impress on the Canadians just what it is capable of with power shooting and excellent defence. Canadian head coach Pat Oaten looked unhappy with the Canadian performance. Mehdi Marzouki sent in two for France after Bogdan Djerkovic scored two for Canada.

French captain Ugo Crousillat converted a penalty with a second left in the first quarter and scored the first of the second. Constantin-Bicari scored from the top on extra-man attack for 6-5 behind while France fired off two more volleys for 8-5. Gaelen Patterson converted extra after a timeout to close to two. However, two French strikes pushed it out to 10-6 before the reply.

France won the third period 3-2 with some wayward shooting from Canada helping the cause. Marzouki picked up a third for 11-8, Duje Zivkovic made it two for 12-9 and Emil Bjorch netting his third on extra-man for the 13-9 break score.

Both teams scored twice in the last without any break, especially the one Canada was desperate to achieve. France had earned the higher ranking.

Match Heroes:
Crousillat was named best in water when there was a host of three-goal scorers. Bjorch and Marzouki also had three for France and Djerkovic, Constantin-Bicari and Jeremie Cote also had three.

Turning Point:
The second quarter that pushed France out to three goals ahead.

Stats Don’t Lie:
France converted eight from 11 on extra-man attack, a fantastic finish. Canada sent in five from 10. France converted two penalty shots and took 32 shots to 30.

Bottom Line:
France gets to play Australia and Canada must face the might of USA in the crossovers, no easy task as USA was also a loser today.

Final Points

Group A: Greece 9, USA 6, Australia 3, Kazakhstan 0.
Group B: Italy 9, France 6, Canada 3, China 0.
Group C: Hungary 9, Croatia 6, Japan 3, Argentina 0.
Group D: Spain 9, Serbia 6, Montenegro 3, South Africa 0.

Sunday Schedule

Classification 13-16 Semifinals
Match 25, 09:00, 4A Kazakhstan v 4B China
Match 26, 09:30, 4C Argentina v 4D South Africa 

Classification 1-12 Crossovers
Match 27, 14:00, 2A USA v 3B Canada
Match 28, 15:30, 3A Australia v 2B France
Match 29, 17:00, 2C Croatia v 3D Montenegro
Match 30, 18:30, 3C Japan v 2D Serbia