Ladies Match Report

Please find (in chronological order) match reports from the latest ladies team games.

Match Report - BUCS Bath vs Southampton 3/12/2014

The coach arrived at Southampton pool, a similar scene as we had played (and won) our first BUCS match there just 2 weeks earlier. Mimi had fallen ill (get well soon Mimi!) and was unable to play, holly had caught the lurgy too and said she wasn't feeling her best, Nina was on her third game of the weekend. Nerves were, understandably, a little high, but the fighting spirit was strong as ever. It was safe to say this game was going to be a good one.

Meet the team: Holly, Nina, Zoe, Barbs, Sophie, Georgie, Georgia, Izzy, Alissa, Rosie and Hannah. Coaches: Joffy and Ryan.

And so the match begins.. Our play was good, we were getting possession, but Southampton were giving us their all. They had set up their arc but our defense was holding them up well. Disaster strikes, Holly has a foul, Southampton are man up. Number one rule is do not let their number 2 get that ball. We're still holding them back but the ref blows his whistle again and now Zoe is out too. Southampton are 2 up. They go for goal...but Nina's saved it! Our victory is short lived however as somehow number 2 has stolen the ball again and this time she's not missing. End of first quarter; Southampton 1, Bath 0.

Words of encouragement from Holly in the water and Joffy and Ryan on the side and the fighting spirit is back. We can do this. Barbs and Georgie are staying tight on their players, Alissa and Zoe are taking turns defending 2 to make sure she has no chance of scoring. Georgia is dominating her player, stealing the ball to be carried effortlessly down the side by Sophie, into the out where Holly shoots the ball right into the back of the net. End of second quarter, 1 all.

Currently undefeated, no way were the team going to settle with a draw. There was some immense pit defense from Rosie, quick steals from Izzy and Hannah, and every single Bath girl was so close to their player. Sophie was determined, she wasn't taking any prisoners and she secures not one, but two goals.

After a quick water top up and some final motivation, the fourth quarter was here. The last quarter of the last BUCS match of the semester. Southampton were not getting this ball. Throughout the entire game they may have been man up..one or two (eight) times but that meant nothing. The final whistle blew and we had done it, final score 3-1 to Bath.

Congratulations to our favourite Aussie Georgia for woman of the match, fair to say you will be greatly missed!

****CAPTAINS CORNER****
Congratulations to all who played both today and in the rest of the season in BUCS, UPOLO and friendly’s. We have such a committed club which you should all be so proud to be part of, I can assure you I am!
Well done to Georgia for her final Bath girlie of the match…. Don’t cry… . You have played some incredible games and will be dearly missed next year. 
Also massive thank you once again to our incredible supporters Baz and Emma. Keenest freshers around!
Also to Ryan and Joffy for their motivational team talks and amazing tactic advice on poolside. A great help and hope you enjoyed being part of such an incredible team. 

SUPER SUNDAY BUCS TOURNAMENT - 30/11/2014 held at Milfield Pool

Game 1 Match Report- Bath v Surrey (Written by Sophie)

The day was finally upon us, we had been preparing all week for our Water Polo extravaganza and now it was time. We set off in all our gear, pumped and ready for a day of polo. With a sing song on the way there and face paint applied (courtesy of Baz) we were ready. We arrived at Millfield and swiftly got into our brand new costumes and what can I say we looked amazing!!! 
Warm up and Team talk done we were ready to take on Surrey. With the starting 7 in the pool we were set, the first whistle blew and Mimi was off like a bullet to get the ball. We had a great start and left Surrey in bemusement with some cracking shots from Mimi and Holly. Our pre game preparation was really paying off and we were working really well as a team. This led to us being 10-1 up after the 1st quarter…Go Bath!! 
The 2nd quarter was a bit tougher with Surrey fighting back, but our solid defence was able to block them out and we only conceded 1 goal. Georgia’s passion for the game unfortunately led to her getting sent out, but this meant she was more determined to get back in for our next game! 13-2 at half time.
After a motivational team talk from Joffy we were set for the final two quarters. We came out strong and shots from Zoe, Mimi, Sophie, Izzy, Hannah and Holly (including an incredible backhand shot) resulted in 10 more goals for Bath!! The final whistle blew, 23-3, our first game was over and oh boy was it a good one. Everybody played a great game with some exceptional shots and some amazing saves from Nina. Well done everyone!!

Game 2. Match Report Bath v Kings (Written by Georgia) -The Nail Biter.

This game would be our toughest yet, but with a few fresh sets of legs and still excited as ever about our dashing new costumes, we were ready to go. Our captains didn’t fail to amaze us, with Mimi and Holly at one goal each at the end of the first quarter. Some incredible saves from Nina left Kings baffled and scoreless and we were up 2-0. 
Kings started the second quarter well determined and before we knew it, it was 2-2 and with some super tight defence, Bath was unable to score until a beautiful goal from Mimi before half time kept us in the lead by 1. But we knew Kings was determined to catch up. 
2 more goals left us at 6 all going into the last quarter. Tensions were high but we wouldn't let Kings’ comeback phase us. After a few quick words of motivation from Mimi, Holly and Joffy, we were fired up and ready to start the last quarter. 
Nina amazed us yet again and a startled Kings side was unable to score. Some smashing teamwork from all the girls got a chance for another goal and we were up by one. The crowd (KaiKai) went wild! A missed attempt at goal from Kings and a sneaky swim down the wing from Sophie saw Bath another goal to finish off the game. Final score Bath 8-Kings 6

Game 3- Match Report Bath v UCL (Written by Rosie)

After already playing two matches with 110% effort the team were pretty exhausted by Match 3 but with two wins under the belt and a break to re-fuel, everyone was determined we could beat UCL. The match started off with a superb sprint and we comfortably took the ball, with Georgie and Zoe charging down the pool to set up a fantastic goal from Mimi within the first 30 seconds of the match. This was shortly followed by a goal from UCL but a couple of quick fire shots from Zoe into the back of the net landed us our second and third goals. UCL fought back scoring again, but with everyone cheering her on, Sophie took stormed down the pool, calmly firing past their keeper from a distance, putting Bath in the lead by 2 points. 
The second quarter started off shaky with UCL scoring two goals, putting them level with us, not a good start! Holly was having none of this, got straight back in the pool, scoring immediately with a smashing top left hand corner goal, making the crowd go wild and fuelling Mimi to follow suit with another two strong goals in the second quarter. 
Following an inspirational team talk, quarter three is where Bath really showed UCL what we were made of. Nina’s excellent defence and some beautiful pit defending from Alissa ensured that UCL scored no goals in this quarter allowing us to storm ahead. Barbs really stepped it up a notch and scored twice within less than a minute of each other, followed by a beautiful shot from Sophie with the help of Georgie from the right hand wing. This quarter was obviously not complete without another powerful goal from Mimi. 
In the final quarter, UCL were provided with a penalty - a perfect chance to score, however our defence remained strong, with a cracking save from Nina. With only minutes of the game remaining our very own Australian, Georgia, took a shot whilst be attacked aggressively by the opposition scoring us our 12th goal ending the match with an overall score of 12-5.

***Captains Corner***
What a day!! I couldn't have asked for a better trip out with you girls. The determination, motivation and true hard work were above and beyond and you have made your captains the proudest captains around. I have never been part of a team who shows so much team work and support for each other and for this you ALL need to give yourselves a pat on the back.

I would like to say a massive thank you to all our supporters as well. Without you there we wouldn't have had the continuous support and you made such a difference. Alongside this, those who helped on the table (especially Baz!) - WOW I can’t believe how well you have picked it up. You are super stars!!

A massive thank you (and this is from all the girls) goes to Joffy. You were an amazing inspiration on the side and made such a difference to making sure everyone knew what they were doing. A MASSIVE thank you to you!

Now it’s the time you have been waiting for… Girly of the match!!
Game one- Bath v Surrey- DRUM ROLL PLEASE….. SOPHIE!!! An incredible game by Sophie, giving 110% for the whole thing. Amazing effort.
Game two- Bath v Kings- DRUM ROLL PLEASE…. MIMI!!! Again an awesome game for our very own salmon (ask Martin for a reference). Inspiration for the team. 
Game three- Bath v UCL- DRUM ROLL PLEASE… GEORGIE!!! Smashing game by Georgie, even when exhausted you showed true consistency and an incredible effort.

Well Done to everyone who played yesterday, you did yourselves and your club proud!! That’s not including how proud we are as captains, we may have even shed a little tear over a hug after the last game . Congratulations to everyone! Bring on the next game!

Match Report-19/11/2014- Ladies Bath 1s v Southampton

One fateful Wednesday the Bath girls donned their blue and yellow war paint as they prepared for their game against Southampton. Not only were we playing for a win at BUCS, we were also playing for a win at Upolo. Double the match, double the excitement.

The atmosphere was electric, the supporters were enthusiastic and the boys were poised and ready to cheer. At the sound of the whistle Mimi blasted off the wall and stole the ball for Bath, a quick interception from Southampton and a goal from their number 2 took Southampton up to 0-1. The determination of the Bath team saw a new lease of life leading to a quick couple of goals from Zoe and Barbs, meaning Bath were back in the lead 2-1.

4.11.2014 - Friendly - Bristol Ladies v Bath Ladies (by Hannah Brinkhurst)

THE TEAM: What can only be described as a herd of Bath girlies made up the team, with a grand total of 22 girls (and James), 14 of who were freshers. The team was: Mimi, Holly, Zoe, Nina, Barbs, Bianca, Sarah, Sophie, Georgia, Georgie, Hannah, Sonia, Emma, Nicole, Amy, Megan, Louisa, Rosie, Holly, Alissa, Amy and Kairavi.

The journey up to Bristol was eventful to say the least, with a bit of confusion from a certain captain who shall not be named (Mimi) of how 18 people were going to fit in a 15-man coach, causing a last-minute dash to the train station. Zoe also provided us with lots of amusement as she tried to navigate the one-way systems of Bristol, making more than a few U-turns but finally ending up in a dodgy parking lot on the side of the road. Parking accomplished but not entirely convinced the minivan would be there when we returned, we headed off to the pool for a few quick lengths before the match began. 

Team talk from the captains: keep your hips up and MARK TIGHT. Stay goal side. Push them up the pool. When the ball turns you sprint down to the other end AS FAST AS YOU CAN. Did we mention to mark tight? 

First quarter was Returners v. Returners. Some dodgy playing from the Bristol team was frustrating to watch but our girls battled through and an amazing back shot from Holly showed us freshies how it’s done. Georgie and Sophie were bright eyed and bushy tailed (getting into the fox spirit ?#?score?) as they made their first appearances in the match too, allowing some breathers.
Second quarter and fresh legs of Mimi’s fresher team joined the pool to meet the strong Bristol returners. The team worked hard to hunt down an opening, and finally a quick sprint from Sophie and BAM! into the back of the net! landed us with our second goal. 
Third quarter and the match was really getting good now, with a quick turnaround of girls giving us a lot of energy in the pool, hounding the opposition. A third goal from Amy W left us all cheering on the sidelines. However Bristol were very strong and some amazing saves from Nina and tackles from Nicole were needed to make sure Bristol didn’t stretch too far ahead.
The final quarter allowed every girl to have some match time, as Bristol started to tire and were FINALLY brave enough to play some freshers of their own. As the final whistle blew the score was 9-3 to Bristol.  
We did ourselves proud, with a BIG (mostly fresher) team playing only their first or second matches EVER (and one still with a debatable concussion from Thursday training – hey Mimi), and everyone putting in a lot of effort and enthusiasm. I’d have to say it’s up there in the top two best matches I’ve ever played. Big thanks to our fave cheerleader/poolside coach James, Zoe for driving and our amazing captains!

**Captains Corner**
Another incredible game by the girls today and Hannah’s match report sums it up very nicely! Here is the announcement of players’ player! DRUM ROLE PLEASEEE….. 
Players Player for Bristol v Bath- AMY WESTON!! Fantastic effort and your first goal for Bath! 
Mimi and I have also chosen what we call our shining stars of the match. Those who we feel played incredible games and put in lots of effort. We can really tell that you have been coming to training!!!
Bristol v Bath shining stars are: DRUM ROLE PLEASEEEE….
Amy Britton, Rosie Darby, Georgie Halford, Amy Weston and Sophie Wilmshurst. Well done girls! 
You all played fantastically and we can’t wait for the next game! 
Lots of love your girly captains

#PoloLove

29.10.2014 - UPolo - Cardiff Ladies v Bath Ladies (by Holly Clemens)

GAME TIME!!! A nervous start to the day for the returners who knew the standard of game we were about to go into, but no fear, our freshies are here and didn't they put on a good show!

Team for the match: Zoe, Barbs, Holly, Mimi, Georgia, Maddie, Naomi, Sonia, Hannah, Emma, Sarah, Kaikai and Nina. 

The drive there was entertaining, singing along to some questionable music, courtesy to the previous driver, and with some round-abouts and a couple U turns we turned up to Cardiff International Pool in high spirits. Butterflies kicked in for the captains as we jumped in for our well prepared warm up. Time to show Cardiff how Bath do it! 

Team talk number 1. 3 things to remember: mark goal side, stay on your player and set up the arc. With that out the way, the first swim off started with our little fish Mimi winning the ball. A quick pass back to Holly and across to Zoe before into the middle where Mimi had a shot. GOAL and only 10 seconds in. This is becoming a habit! With Cardiff slightly confused and in disbelief that the team they thought they would walk over, one goal up, the game really started. 

Georgia then made an incredible appearance and scored her first goal for Bath! Good work Georgia. This was followed by 2 more straight into the back of the net from Barbs and Holly bringing the final score of the first quarter to 4-2 to Bath. 

With Cardiff realising Bath are now a tough team to play, they put in their strongest team and along came their GB players to try and put them in the lead. After some strong shots and some incredible saves from Nina, Cardiff managed to pull themselves back up finishing the second quarter 5-4 to Cardiff. 
No fear from the Bath team though and with positive mental attitudes and keeping spirits high the third quarter started. Another good quarter with some fantastic blocks from the defence! As a team we were managing to hold off Cardiff and three more goals were hammered into the back of the net by Naomi, Mimi and Holly. Nina was on full form and had some more incredible saves to finish the three quarter on a score of 7-7. 

The final quarter. Again our little fish Mimi won the swim off and our attack skills were being put to good use. Moving towards the goal we managed to put two more goals into the back of the net just missing out with a final score of 10-9 to Cardiff. 

All in all an absolutely incredible game! Girls we couldn't be prouder. They are a tough team and we played exceptionally well. The team work showed by all is one that can’t be faulted and team spirit was definitely in the air! 

Special mention goes to the girlie of the match- NINA!!! Some of your saves were beyond amazing. And to Georgia for your first goal for Bath! 

A huge thank you also to Holly Luker and Baz for the support and help on the table. It was great to have you on the side and really helped us with the game! Next time it’s your turn 

Lots of love your girlie polo captains  

#PoloLove
xxx

26.10.14 - UPolo - Bath Ladies vs Aberystwyth (by Mimi Barr)

Now some would say our match preparation was perfection.. a four hour packed minibus journey accompanied by KFC and Maccyds, late night team flexibility challenge in the form of the one and only cereal box game (special mention to the last men standing Jacob, Sawley, Matt and Mimi), midnight bday celebration blue and yellow muffins (thank you mummy Kennerley) for maddies 19th, one huge slumber party round chair Zoe's, one massive team fry up breakfast, beach trip and ice sea swims and more travelling till we finally reached the snug pool of Aberystwyth. With the blue and yellow maccyd support balloons in the crowd, the boys game done, and the girls ready to rip back at Aberystwyth after the appalling reffing of the boys game. We were ready. 

Meet the team. 
(1) Nina the nearly naked Richards
(2) Holly the Hulk Clemens
(3) Zoe the Stig Kennerley
(5) Tadpole Izzy Stacey
(6) Pit Georgie Halford
(7) Maddie Snorer Hollis
(8) Smiley Sophie Wilmshurst
(9) Singer Sonia Gould
(10) Mummy Mimi Barr

With the starting 7 in the pool ready for revenge, the whistle blew. A quick sprint, tackle, sprint and shot by Mimi resulted in a 1-0 lead within the first minute. Adrenaline was running high amongst the team and the weekend bonding had produced an electric feel within the team, within minutes more goals had been driven into the back of the net by Zoe, Mimi, two by Holly and a cracking first polo goal by the one and only Georgie, leaving Aberystwyth in awe and 5 goals down after the first quarter. 

Dynamics rose in the second quarter, punishing tackles all round from the Bath side left Aber in our wake, confidence grew and the precision of our passes increased, thinking a hat trick wouldn't be enough, we continued providing perfect opportunities for pit holly to convert goal scoring opportunities, and five goals later by the Hulk, and one by Mimi the half time score sat at 11-0.

Third quarter, the bets had been placed. 19 goals had to be scored. 19 for Maddie's 19th. Not only this but everyone had to score a goal... Our new ambitions resulted in even more beautiful passing, deliveries and shots at goal. The ball was worked elegantly across the arc to the finger tips of Izzy, Maddie, Sonia and Mimi who each converted further goals to the tally. Third quarter score 15-0.

Fourth quarter had two aims- 4 goals. Sophie to convert. By this point, our freshers were dominating the opposition, stupendous tackles were being laid by tadpole, beautiful pit defending by Georgie and through a culmination of passes and tackles from the returners, Sophie the Beast had the ball. A sprint up the pool and a smirk at the goalie led to a smashing top left corner goal and one of the aims had been met. Everyone had scored. But boy did Sophie not stop there! Before we knew it, three more shots had been powered to the back of the goal and with the whistle blown, we had done it. 19-0 full time.

Congratulations Maddie, Izzy, Georgie and Sophie on your first Bath Polo goal, may we wish more for the future, and a great big pat on the back to all the freshers for the 110% effort you put in. An unapologetic sorry to Nina for the lack of goalie-ing you had to do, a happy birthday to maddie, big thanks to Sawley for the pool side coaching and the boys for your cheering support. You have made your girlie captains very proud.

The BUCS team who played Southampton!