After the disappointment of losing their first match - 10-5 against Coventry - York City grabbed a point in a dramatic finish to their later clash with Bridgefield in men's Championship 4 at Haberdashers today.

York trailed 6-3 towards the end of the third period. But sharp shooting by Chris Burns, who finished with four goals, gradually hauled York back into the game. Eventually, Nick Boaz's third strike levelled it at 8-8 - with just 20 seconds remaining.

Earlier, Bridgefield trailed 5-3 to Sheffield Dolphins in their first game, only to counter spectacularly in the second period, which they won 7-nil. Eventually, they took both points with a 13-7 win, featuring four goals from Jacob Graham and an Alex Saunders hat-trick.

Connor Keeble (Photo: Trevor Hyde) was unstoppable for Sedgefield, bagging seven in a 14-6 defeat of Invicta Marlins. Watford Saxons relied on goals in the final period from Sam Parry (2), George Sadler and Josh Barrett to edge clear of Caledonia Storm 15-10.

And finally . . . the women’s qualifying tournament is to be held at Walsall, on 2/3 April.

Originally, the event was planned on that same weekend at Northampton. Briefly, it was moved to Liverpool on 8/9 April, which would have benefited the majority of teams from a travel point of view.

Only then was it realised that the date clashed with the Grand National at Aintree, as well as the small matter of Everton’s home match against Manchester United – which meant that booking hotels in the city would be either hugely expensive or impossible.
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So Walsall, 2/3 April, it will be. Apologies if this further rearrangement creates inconvenience for anyone. Teams involved will be St Andrews University, Liverpool Water Beatles, Manchester Comets, Kirkintilloch & Kilsyth, Solihull and Sunderland.

​No fewer than 13 teams – easily a record - will be bidding for places in the British League when the 2022/23 women’s and men’s qualification tournaments take place in April.
 
There are six in the women’s competition, which has been moved from Northampton, 2/3 April, to Liverpool Aquatics Centre, 9/10 April – St Andrews University, Liverpool Water Beatles, Manchester Comets (these were the three bottom-placed teams in Division 3 this season), and Kirkintilloch & Kilsyth, Solihull and Sunderland (all involved in the most recent qualifying tournament but without making the top three).
 
The men’s tournament at Haberdashers on 2/3 April will feature four clubs completely new to BWPL – Avondale, Colchester, Northampton and Radcliffe – plus Bedford, who are aiming to return to the League five years after ending 28 seasons of continuous involvement in the former men’s National League as well as BWPL. Completing the line-up will be Cambridge and Chester, the two lowest-placed teams in Division 5 this season.
 
The top three at each qualifying event progress to Division 3 (women) or Division 5 (men) at the start of the 2022/23 season. 

BWPL’s Committee held a meeting this evening (23 December) to discuss current developments in the pandemic and the possible impact on League events scheduled in the second phase of the season. 

The Committee were made aware of concerns expressed by member clubs – and acknowledged the complexities arising from differing Government rulings affecting Scotland and Wales.

It was agreed that the League would maintain its established stance of following Government advice as well as guidance from its governing body, Swim England. As currently there was no ruling from Government or Swim England directly impacting on BWPL scheduled events, the programme would remain as planned – starting at Haberdashers and Walsall on 8/9 January.
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However, if further information or guidance becomes available in the next few days, the League Committee will meet again and decide what action to take. 

The death has occurred of David Owen, who played for many years in the Birkenhead team that was one of the most powerful in the country in the 1960s. He’s pictured second from left in the back row of this team photo with the English Club Championship Shield.

David, known as ‘Butch’, also coached Birkenhead to National League and English Championship titles. The club were founder members of the National League in 1962, claiming their first win in 1965 – when they pipped Polytechnic to the crown on goal difference (their lender advantage was just 0.016 of a goal!).
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The funeral takes place on Friday at Anfield Crematorium, 4pm. 

​President Trevor Pledger has warned that the British League is close to “breaking point” due to a critical shortage of officials to run events.

“It has been obvious to me during the first half of the season that things are getting more and more stretched,” he declared. “Weekend schedules are being completed in some cases only because a small, dedicated group of people have been prepared to take on extra duties. But they are tired and in some cases reluctant to carry on in the same way.

“The League is struggling for officials in all areas – particularly, event managers and table officials, but also referees and delegates. We will do our very best to get through phase two of the season. But the fact remains that the current model is not sustainable and solutions must be found.

“An easy option would be to reduce the workload by cutting divisions, which obviously no one will be keen to see. But the position is that serious and we will need the involvement of all member clubs as we try to find some answers.”
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The League committee debated the problem at its recent meeting, stressing the importance of maintaining standards in appointing officials whenever possible – but accepting that there would always be difficulties due to availability issues. Among suggestions was a training course for people interested in becoming event managers. Anyone willing to volunteer for any role should please contact League chairman David Andrews, dave.andrews@bwpl.org

A date for your diaries - on Saturday, 9 July, next year, BWPL will be holding a celebration to mark 60 years of league water polo in this country as well as the 35th aniversary of the foundation of the Women's National League.

It will take place at Parliament Hill Fields Lido, Gospel Oak, Hampstead Heath, and include a full programme of matches and a barbecue. It's hoped that all BWPL clubs, as well as former players, will give the event their full support. More details later.

Swim England confirmed today that it intends to host a 10-day tournament in 2022 featuring “teams from across the Commonwealth.”

For the British League, it will mean overcoming a problem – because the planned dates, between 25 November and 4 December, clash with a weekend earmarked for League competition and published some time ago in the League’s fixtures blueprint for 2022/23.

“Clearly, we will be very keen to do all we can to support such an important initiative,” said BWPL chairman David Andrews. “In anticipation of the tournament taking place, we have agreed to move the men’s Division 1 and women’s Division 3 programmes, due on 26/27 November, to accommodate it. I am sure such a change will be welcomed, offering the opportunity for everyone associated with BWPL to attend.”

Coventry’s Ian Elliot, Chair for the proposed new competition, said: “Hosting an event of this nature, particularly with the uncertainties of a global pandemic, is always going to be a challenge. Feasibility studies and initial planning are promising but not concluded.”
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Swim England says: “Approaches have been made to potential partners to put together a viable tournament, to confirm logistics and the event format, including a water polo legacy programme.”

Solihull stormed into the men’s Super 5s by taking five points from three matches on the final weekend of men’s Division 1 action at Coventry.

They finished today in style, beating Cheltenham 15-11. However, the key result in Super 5s terms happened on day one when they edged out Invicta 13-12. It made it highly likely that Invicta would drop to Championship 1, for the first time in three years.

The issue was quickly settled on day two. Invicta faced Manchester and actually led 3-0 early on. But any chance of a shock victory disappeared as they but were gradually overpowered by the undefeated champions, who won 17-10, including another five goals for Dan Paddon (5), plus strong contributions from Cam Richards (4) and Aron Ando (3).
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Competing in the Super 5s will be Manchester, Cheltenham, Sheffield, Solihull and Lancaster. Invicta, Welsh Wanderers and Polytechnic join the top five from Division 2 – Penguin, Caledonia, Sutton & Cheam, Exeter and Watford – in what should be an extremely competitive Championship 1.

Lancaster made their Super 5s place secure with a 19-11 victory over Welsh Wanderers, including a remarkable 13-goal haul by unstoppable Tom Curwen. 

Photos (Trevor Hyde):

​Above - Eyes shut . . . Invicta's James Spencer-Boyle gets in a shot against Solihull. Below -  Spilios Kaloudis on the attack for Manchester.

The withdrawal of St Andrews University from the final women’s Division 3 weekend at Northampton (see news item below) left Southampton with much enhanced prospects of retaining a top five place and moving forward to Championship 2 in the New Year.

They made doubly sure of safety today, beating Manchester Comets 6-4, including two goals each for Tamsyn Sciortino and Lilly Tomlins.

Penguin Emperors completed a hat-trick of wins when Rachel Bull (Photo: Trevor Hyde) netted five in an 11-7 victory over Cheltenham. Otter also collected maximum points from the Northampton weekend. The London rivals took the top two places, both with six wins and a draw from seven matches. 
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Southampton head for Championship 2 together with Otter Lutra, Penguin Emperors, Watford and Cheltenham. Also involved will be the Division 2 bottom three - Welsh Wanderers, Sheffield Stingrays and Birmingham. St Andrews, Liverpool Water Beatles and Manchester Comets miss the second phase of the season and will need to book a place for 2022/23 via next April’s qualification tournament.