Water Start!

Team Northumbria enjoyed a 100% start in their bid to win promotion as the Water Polo season enters a pivotal phase.

Former Team GB skipper Neil Bowers and his men stormed to the top of the Championship Three table with a hat-trick of victories.

And a 12-3 mauling of local rivals Carlisle was the pick of the results after the Cumbrians had defeated TN earlier this season.

The top three teams in Championship Three will gain promotion to National League Division Three in 2012.

And TN are in pole position to rise through the ranks ahead of the next round of fixtures in Newport on November 26-27.

Bowers and company eased past Swindon Dolphin 17-4 in the first of three clashes in Grantham as the end-of-season playoffs took centre stage.

A nailbiting 11-10 win against Otter set up the chance of an undefeated start to Championship Three but Carlisle lay in wait to spoil the party.

The Cumbrians went into the clash as favourites after topping the Division Four table in the run up to the playoffs.

But a magnificent TN turned the form book on its head with three goals from Bowers and two apiece from Josh Brown, Santiago Marques, Richard MacAlister and Pat Bennett sealing a convincing win.

Water polo’s regular season ended last month with TN finishing fourth in Division Four.

That meant the Sport Central club joined the bottom three teams from Division Three to contest a round robin playoff staged at four central venues between November and January.

TN travel to Newport a week tomorrow to face fellow Division Four promotion hopefuls Bedford and Cambridge.

And two more wins would all but book their place in Division Three ahead of the 2012 season.

Back to News