Defending champion Hungary and Spain will battle for gold after strong semifinals in Manisa today. Hungary overcame Croatia 18-13 in a big-scoring clash and Spain sent off Australia 14-7.
DAY 6 MATCHES
Division 1 Semifinals (1-4)
Match 47, CROATIA 13 HUNGARY 18 (4-5, 2-5, 2-3, 5-5)
Hungary outlasted and out-gasped Croatia in a long match, giving it a chance to defend the crown won two years ago in Volos, Greece. Croatia made its intentions plain with the first two goals but had to contend with Hungarian captain Kincso Kinez, making sure of two penalty goals for 2-2. Kinez came into the match with 18 goals, so was going to be a handful. She took her team ahead with a blast from the top. Croatia replied and Kinez regained the lead on extra. Lara Srhoj, one of the revelations of Manisa, levelled for Croatia on extra — her 15th goal. Hanga Szalkai gave Hungary the edge a second from time. Kinga Alaksza and Barbara Fule lifted Hungary to 7-4 with Srhoj going on counter to drag one back. Goals were traded for 8-6 and Alaksza and Fule both scored on action for 10-6 at halftime.
Goals were swapped in the third period before Kinez hammered one in from the top for 12-7. Szalkai went on counter for 13-7 with the final goal coming from Neli Jankovic on extra for her 13th in Manisa and 13-8. Alaksza and Jankovic traded at the top of the fourth and Petra Galic converted extra at 5:19. Fule netted her fourth for 15-10, Nina Jazvin scored her second on extra and 14th in total for 15-11. Five goals came in the last 96 seconds with Szalkai claiming the last two for Hungary to take her to four and Hungary winning 18-13. Hungary was solidly through to the final and well placed to retain its crown.
Match Heroes
Kinez was on fire with her five goals while Fule, Szalkai and player-of-the-match Alaksza all scored four. Croatia’s best were Srhoj and Jankovic with three apiece.
Turning Point
Coming from two down to take the quarter lead and progressing the margins until ultimate victory.
Stats Don’t Lie
Croatia converted six from seven on extra and Hungary two from six. Hungary scored the only two penalties on offer and made six steals to one.
Bottom Line
Hungary deserves to be in the final, but thanks to Croatia, we now have another powerhouse in women’s water polo.
Match 48, SPAIN 14 AUSTRALIA 7 (4-2, 3-1, 4-0, 3-4)
Spain produced a masterclass and showed why it is quite capable of winning gold. Spain ripped to a 4-0 advantage with their scoring machines pumping out the shots that counted. It was not until 3:34 that Australia came upon the scoring scene through left-hander Sara Connors at centre forward. Australia’s strength is its all-round shooting prowess while Spain has standouts like captain Queralt Anton with a penalty and counter-attack double. It brought up 19 goals for her, but she was shut down for the rest of the match. Australia’s second goal also came from an aerial pass to centre forward Amelie Hoefel for 4-2. Spain’s next goal came at the top of the second quarter through Martina Fernandez at centre. Goals were traded and Spain gained a valuable 7-3 break through Marina Pineda who had 10 goals before today. She scored on counter at 1:40.
The third quarter was equally hard-fought with just four goals — all to Spain. The Aussies had six shots unsuccessful. Daniela Pajares pushed the margin to nine at 6:33 in the fourth period with Allanah Paul replying on the next attack — Australia’s first goal for nearly 14 minutes. Julia Frigola took it to 13-4 and Australia scored consecutive goals to Lucy Stuart on counter and captain Emmersen McEwan from the penalty line. Carmen Diaz from the top and Hoefel from penalty, closed the scoring at 14-7. The accomplished Spain was through to the final.
Match Heroes
Frigola shot four goals with Anton, Fernandez and Pineda gaining two more to their Manisa tallies. Hoefel was Australia’s multiple scorer at two.
Turning Point
Those first four goals.
Stats Don’t Lie
Both teams went two from six on extra and both scored their penalty shots — 2-3. Spain made 13 steals to 10 and had six extra shots.
Bottom Line
Spain is worthy of the title world champion. Australia will be hoping that bronze medallist is equally as impressive.
Division 1 Semifinals (5-8)
Match 45, NETHERLANDS 7 GREECE 14 (2-3, 2-3, 1-6, 2-2)
Greece bided its time to equal at one and two and then take the lead at three before the first-quarter buzzer. Problems arose for Greece when captain Nefeli Krassa was ejected two, but managed to stay in the water until the end and score goals. Jette Botermans sent in a penalty goal for 3-3 at the top of the second period. Greece replied with two penalty strikes for 5-3. Sabine Brinkman goaled from centre forward for 5-4. Krassa stole the ball and scored at centre soon after for 6-4 for her 17th goal. Netherlands’ Leyla Hiati had a penalty shot saved and Krassa hit the post with her attempt on the next attack to close the half. A pair of Greek goals took it to 8-4 and goals were traded for 9-5. Three minutes elapsed before Afroditi Bitsakou and Androniki Karagianni — from the centre and from counter — to push the margin to six. Aikaterini Koundouraki also scored on counter, making it 12-5 just before the buzzer. Three minutes into the last quarter, Marjolein de Gier plucked a loose ball intended for the goalkeeper and snapped it into goal while the Greeks were swimming on attack. Krassa converted a penalty and Lydia Mouzi shot from the top for 14-6. The Dutch took a timeout with 19 seconds left and Botermans converted the extra a second from full time.
Match Heroes
Karagianni topped the scoring with four goals and player-of-the-match Rafaela Saltamanika claimed three more. Botermans and de Gier scored twice each for Netherlands.
Turning Point
Greece taking control at 3-2 in the first quarter and keeping the Dutch at bay thereafter.
Stats Don’t Lie
The Dutch scored two from four and Greece one from four on extra. Greece nailed three of the four penalty shots to Netherlands’ one from two. On steals, Greece was best at 11-6.
Bottom Line
Greece promised so much early on and is a strong contender for fifth now that it is out of medal range.
Match 46, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 12 ITALY 14 in penalty shootout FT: 11-11. Pens 1-3 (2-1, 3-3, 3-3, 3-4. Pens: 1-3)
Italy, like Greece, showed a lot of promise with the possibility of playing for medals. However, they will clash in the fifth-placed play-off. Greece needed to go to penalties to set up this scenario. It took four minutes into the first quarter for the first goal to eventuate. Kirra Pantaleon, with 16 goals before the match, scored on extra. The equaliser came nearly two minutes later and just before the buzzer, USA captain Charlotte Raisin converted a penalty foul for 2-1 and her 13th strike. Chrissy Flynn scored a pair at the top of the second quarter for a USA 4-1 advantage. It became 5-3 inside the last three minutes and Elisa Mercatali scored on extra for 5-4, 10 seconds from halftime.
Once again, it took until halfway through the third period for the first goal — Pantaleon nailing extra-man attack from the left-hand-catch position. Goals were traded and Pantaleon struck again on penalty for 8-5. This was quickly negated by Margherita Minuto, the tournament’s highest scorer, with her second and 29th goal. Her 30th came on penalty two seconds from the buzzer for 8-7. Pantaleon pushed it out to two on the first fourth-quarter attack and Minuto responded (31) on extra after a timeout. Italy levelled through Martina Abrizi from the left post while totally unguarded on extra. Pantaleon converted extra-man for the go-ahead goal at 3:29. Mercatali responded on extra for the third tie of the match at 10-10. Minuto sent in a penalty goal (32) to regain the lead for Italy at 1:56 and Flynn equalised at 1:16 with a rocket shot off a quick pass. USA took a timeout to no effect and the match went to penalties. USA missed the first, third and fourth shots and Italy the third, leaving Mercatali to slot the eight shot for victory.
Match Heroes
Italian goalkeeper Emma Serafini with eight saves in the match and one in the shootout (the other two hit the post) was named player of the match. Minuto finished with five goals and Mercateli with two. For USA, Pantaleon claimed five goals and Flynn three.
Turning Point
Italy’s final-quarter comeback, never giving up even when USA went two ahead.
Stats Don’t Lie
Italy converted five from eight on extra and denied USA five of 11. On penalty goals, Italy managed two from four and USA two from three. Italy made eight steals to three.
Bottom Line
Italy is one of the class teams here, as we have said before, and with Minuto the major strike force (the next best shooter has 13), it should do well in the play-offs.
Division 2 Semifinals (9-12)
Match 43, CANADA 5 GERMANY 7 (1-3, 2-2, 0-1, 2-1)
Germany collected a third victory in Manisa and now heads to the classification for ninth. Germany opened the scoring from the top and went ahead 2-1 and 3-1 before the break. It took three minutes of the second quarter of non-scoring before Emma Fehmel made it 4-1. This stunned Canada into replying via Bridget Mihaljevich. Auden Dolejsi scored on extra, but Fehmel made sure of the two-goal margin by halftime, scoring deep left on extra six seconds from time. The third period was scoreless for more than four minutes with players tiring before Fehmel gave Germany the 6-3 margin as she was free on the deep left and sent the ball over the goalkeeper’s head. It was the only goal of the period as Canada’s penalty attempt was stopped by the goalkeeper. Airi Cowie converted penalty for 6-4 at 5:31 in the fourth after Fehmel gained her third major foul. Canada went to a timeout at 3:23 and the first pass went straight to Madeleine Eibner at centre forward who backhanded the goal for one goal behind. Lucy Schuessler shifted left to free herself up and took the pass and scored from centre forward for 7-5 at 1:57. Canada took another timeout, but the resulting shot hit the crossbar and fell safely to the goalkeeper. Canada stole the ball and goalkeeper Alexandra Stoddard raced upfield and she shot wide left. Germany held the ball for the victory.
Match Heroes
German goalkeeper Muriel Tannenhauer was named best in water with her eight saves. Fehmel finished with three to double her scoring for the week and captain Mara Dzaja sent in two.
Turning Point
Having the 3-1 opening quarter and then scoring the 7-5 goal to save the match.
Stats Don’t Lie
Germany scored three from four on extra and stopped five from six. Canada converted one of two from penalty and Canada made nine steals to six. Canada had 22 shots compared to a parsimonious 16 for Germany.
Bottom Line
Germany always looked dangerous and worked better as a team. Canada had little training before coming to Manisa and this has showed.
Match 44, CHINA 7 SERBIA 2 (3-1, 1-0, 1-1, 2-0)
China won its third match in an encounter that was tight in all aspects. In fact, just 27 shots were taken by the teams. Jinweng Zhang began the match strongly on the first attack, scoring from centre forward while defended by three players. It was her eighth goal in Manisa. Masa Cuk moved quickly forward at centre, took the pass and lobbed for 1-1 at 2:03. It was her 12th goal. Shangyu Chen scored from the top on extra and Jingwen Zhang converted a penalty inside the final minute for 3-1. The fourth goal came from close in off the cross pass on extra, Sirui Huang finishing for 4-1. Nika Ratkovic scored from deep left on extra for 4-2 to start the third-quarter scoring. China took a timeout and the following shot hit the wood. Just over a minute later Anran Yu gained an ejection and accepted the pass to score from close to the goal for 5-2 at 0:58. Qihan Zhu drove in from deep right and lobbed for the 6-2 score at 4:38 in the fourth period. Serbia took a timeout on extra and the subsequent shot rebounded into the field for China to snap up. An intercepted pass at one end led to Jingwen Zhang scoring at the other on counter for 7-2 at 1:38. China went to a timeout and made a hash of the passing. Serbia stole the ball and took a timeout, gained an exclusion but illegally shot, giving China the last charge, but it too lost the ball and had to settle for a 7-2 victory.
Match Heroes
Jingwen Zhang, with three goals, was named best in pool and now has 10 goals.
Turning Point
China making it 3-1 at the quarter break.
Stats Don’t Lie
China converted three from five and Serbia one from two. China snared the only penalty goal. China won the match with a paltry 12 shots taken, such was the defence. Serbia managed 15 attempts.
Bottom Line
China has proven it is a good team and will progress now that the country is rebuilding its teams after the enforced shutdown due to Covid-19.
Division 3 Semifinals (13-16)
Match 41, SOUTH AFRICA 4 THAILAND 14 (0-4, 1-4, 1-3, 2-3)
Thailand proved a real handful for South Africa with the 4-0 first quarter, setting the pace. By halftime, Thailand had the match sewn up. Resistance in the second half showed just how good the defence was by both teams. South Africa’s second goal came at 11-2, 2:10 from the final break, and the fourth was slipped in by Inez Letschert, just inside the final minute.
Match Heroes
While the scoresheet shows that captain Thanidakarn Kwantongtanaree scored six goals — 15 in Manisa — and was named player of the match, Paranee Chotrotchanaanan three, kudos must go to goalkeeper Phanthila Arsayuth for making six saves, including a penalty stop.
Turning Point
The opening whistle was where Thailand decided to take a grip on the match and strangle South Africa.
Stats Don’t Lie
On extra, Thailand went one from three and defended both South African attempts. Thailand managed one from two on penalty and stopped the one South African shot.
Bottom Line
Thailand was dangerous with its star shooters and this proved too big a hurdle for the Africans.
Match 42, TURKIYE 14 UKRAINE 2 (3-0, 4-1, 4-1, 3-0)
Turkiye set its scorers alight for a first win in Manisa. Turkiye kept Ukraine at bay in the first quarter, scoring the first two goals on action — Betul Haltas —and counter — by the left-handed Mina Bozkurt — and a third just before the buzzer by Defne Keremoglu from deep left. Naz Ozdemir continued the Turkish onslaught on counter at the top of the second quarter. Haltas was half turned when she received the ball at centre forward and sent it in over the goalkeeper’s head for 5-0. She scored again a minute later for her third, setting herself the same way and actually bouncing the ball in the air before scoring. Viktoriia Rudnyk sat up on the top left, baulked and scored cross cage for Ukraine’s first goal at 2:17 in the second quarter. Ozdemir replied from the top right for 7-1 a minute from halftime.
Rudnyk opened the third period with a repeat of her earlier goal for 7-2 at 4:30. Eda Moroglu scored identical goals to Rudnyk’s for 9-2. Captain Neda Yildiz made it 10-2 from deep left just before the possession buzzer. Moroglu sat up at seven metres and sent in a screamer for 11-2 at 0:23. Ukraine had a goal disallowed as it was still on the hand of the shooter when the quarter buzzer sounded. In the fourth quarter, Lal Uz converted a penalty with a low skip into the left corner and Moroglu shot a cannon from the top for 13-2. A Ukraine timeout came to nought and nearly three minutes later, Moroglu scored her fifth from the left-hand-catch position, which proved to be the final goal.
Match Heroes
Moroglu with her five goals had the highest tally and now has seven, but Haltas was named best in water with her three and Ozdemir claimed two. Rudnyk scored both Ukraine’s goals to bring her tally to eight.
Turning Point
Having six goals against you before you start scoring makes for a tough time and giving little chance of a resurgence.
Stats Don’t Lie
Turkiye defended four from five on extra but had no chances itself. Turkiye scored the only penalty and on steals, Turkiye went six from four and the total shoot count was 21-14 in Turkiye’s favour.
Bottom Line
Turkiye learnt from two losses to eventual semifinalist Australia and today was a chance to open up and score goals. It only had nine coming into today’s encounter.
Classification 21-22 Semifinal
Match 66, ZIMBABWE 2 NEW ZEALAND 11 (0-4, 0-1, 2-2, 0-4)
Both teams were looking for their first win in Manisa and New Zealand made sure of taking the chance. They will play again on the final day for the official 21st ranking through q quirk of the draw and the missing two teams. This allows a similar of number of matches as the other teams. New Zealand scored on penalty, off a deep cross pass to the left and a score on counter by 2:59. Sophie Yeoman scored her first goal here at 1:31 and from five metres in front of goal. The Kiwis went to the first break 4-0 ahead. Zimbabwe put the tight squeeze on New Zealand, forcing it set up away from the goal. The tactic worked well and there were nearly no goals in the period. The press and the pressure did not let up and even a point-blank Kiwi shot on extra could not beat the goalie. Violet Smith broke the drought when she turned her opponent and smashed the ball into goal from two metres for 5-0, just one second from the buzzer — the first goal for seven and a half minutes.
Zimbabwe was rewarded for its excellent defensive work when it scored the first goal through Mazvitaishe Zuze from centre forward at 4:45 in the third period. Bella Needham scored her second from centre at 2:40 and Kaylynn Dick responded for Zimbabwe on extra at 2:15. Zoe Knight, a first-quarter scorer, converted extra from top left for 7-2. New Zealand scored, but the buzzer beat the ball to the back of the net. Yeoman easily put away a goal from centre forward for 8-2 on the first attack of the fourth quarter. She followed up for her third with a strike from top left for 9-2. Isabella Lambie converted a penalty foul and Smith ripped in a shot on counter, 17 seconds later. The Kiwis had been unleashed and the score 11-2, which carried until the end.
Match Heroes
Knight collected the award for her three goals and Yeoman also took three.
Turning Point
The opening quarter.
Stats Don’t Lie
Low stats indeed as New Zealand only shot 17 times while Zimbabwe was lucky to get 10 away, as the defences of both teams was exceptional. New Zealand converted one from two on extra and defended two from three. New Zealand scored the only two penalty goals.
Bottom Line
New Zealand came into the match with 19 goals and left the poolwith 30 in Manisa. Zimbabwe just could not keep up the incessantly tough defence that worked so well for much of the match.
Classification 19-20
Match 67, FRANCE 11 MALTA 9 (4-2, 2-2, 3-3, 2-2)
France goes home with 19th place and Malta 20th for their first experience at this level, For France, it was a second victory. It was achieved by starting with the first two goals and edging to 4-1 and then 4-2 by giving up a penalty to Malta in the last second. It came to 4-3 and 5-4 in the second quarter with captain Sherihene Benmouna scoring both France’s goals — on counter and penalty. Chloe Amato scored Malta’s pair, both from centre forward. Malta scored through Kaylen Cutajar from the top and Elise Gatt on extra to level at 6-6 by 3:40 in the third period. Justine Moizant on extra, Benmouna while cleaning up a missed shot bottom right and Sohane Bentaleb, on extra from four metres in front, had France 9-6 in charge. Amato scored from with a big six-metre-foul shot from eight metres out for 9-7 not long before the buzzer. Benmouna converted extra for 10-7 early in the fourth quarter and no more goals came until the last 30 seconds when Maltese captain Eyla Schembrie scored her second and 12th for the tournament on extra from top right. Feryel Bentaleb replied on extra from a cross pass to deep left at 0:09 and converted a penalty foul for Malta, two seconds from time for 11-9.
Match Heroes
Benmouna was named the best with her six goals to give her 15 for the tournament. Sohane Bentaleb scored twice for 12. Chloe Amato notched three for Malta to double her scoring and Schembrie sent in two to bring up 10.
Turning Point
Right back at that first quarter when two up. The final difference was two.
Stats Don’t Lie
France converted six from 12 on extra and stopped four from six. Both teams went two from three on penalty
Bottom Line
France worked hard on the extra-man plays and was rewarded.
Day 7 Schedule
Classification Finals
Classification 21-22
Match 69. 08:00, NZL v ZIM
Classification 15-16
Match 49. 09:15, RSA v UKR
Classification 13-14
Match 50. 10:30, THA v TUR
Classification 11-12
Match 51. 11:45, CAN v SRB
Classification 9-10
Match 52. 13:00, GER v CHN
Classification 17-18
Match 68. 14:15, KAZ v CZE
Classification 7-8
Match 53. 15:30, NED v USA
Classification 5-6
Match 54. 17:00, GRE v ITA
Classification 3-4 (Bronze)
Match 55. 18:30, CRO v AUS
Classification 1-2 (Gold)
Match 56. 20:00, HUN v ESP