Neptunes survive scare as match ends in fracas

Waterpolo is a sport were excitement reigns supreme if not also tempered with tension especially when the teams are balanced.

These elements in yesterday’s match between Neptunes Emirates and San Ġiljan Firetech may have also stemmed from outside factors related to recent contestations over a junior league match between the same teams.

All this tension erupted in the final moments after Neptunes survived a mighty scare to score three goals in the last session and make it 16-13.

Typically there was commotion as some San Ġiljan players tried to approach the opposite side in a belligerent way. As a result players from both sides almost came to blows, but there were many other players who to their credit tried to calm down their nervous colleagues in the absence of sufficient number of policemen.

If all that happened yesterday is in the name of sport then some serious soul-searching has to be done.

Back to sport itself, the match was a titanic battle which must have had Neptunes sighing with relief when they finally secured the points. San Ġiljan played with extra fire in their bellies, very much in consonance with their sponsors’ name.

They played their best game of the season, putting their opponents in constant difficulty as they kept pulling back the deficit and at times even managed to nose ahead.

The high-scoring element and the high-rate of expulsions (there were four players who were fouled out, three for Neptunes and one for San Ġiljan with another Saints player excluded with substitution late in the game) made for more excitement with the first session ending 2-2, the second 4-4 and the third 6-6 before the anti-climax in the last session.

Martin Toth distinguished himself with a naphand of goals, with Steve Camilleri, for the Reds, outdoing the Hungarian with six conversions.

In those final 90 seconds, with the score 13-13, Neptunes broke twice through Michele Stellini and then again through four-goal Tamas Molnar then hell broke loose... in the name of ‘sport’.

Division Two

Needing at least a draw to finish as runners-up in the second division, Ta’ Xbiex Mermaids Paradise were trailing 9-8 with just over two minutes left as Otters Nivea sensed a possible victory with a resultant second spot going to them.

However, Dutch player Dave Gabriel netted his fourth goal but more importantly earned his team the required point to reach their objective.

It had been a close match with the lead alternating and with six-goal Zoltan Radocz and Gabriel distinguishing themselves.

Midway through the last session, Tamas Gyrovath was excluded with substitution, a handicap which was eventually overcome by his team.

Neptunes 16
San Ġiljan 13
(2-2, 4-4, 6-6, 4-1)

Neptunes: N. Gouder, N. Lanzon, B. Lanzon, M. Stellini 2, D. Camilleri, V. Vujasinovic 2, S. Camilleri 6, J. Camilleri 1, R. Buhagiar, S. Gravina, T. Molnar 4, M. Pisani 1.

San Ġiljan: D. Camilleri, C. Spiteri De Barro, M. Pace, K. Galea 1, C. Gialanze 1, K. Dowling, H. Nossek 2, A. Bianchi 1, E. Aquilina 1, R. Scerri, P. Fava 2, M. Toth 5, K. Schembri.

Refs: I. Sciriha, F. Busacca.

Ta’ Xbiex 9
Otters 9
(3-4, 3-1, 1,3, 2-1)

Ta’ Xbiex: A. Xuereb, S. Cachia, D. Caruana 2, A. Farrugia, L. Borg, C. Bugeja, J. Tabone, D. Gabriel 4, A. Galea, I. Azzopardi, T. Gyrovath 3.

Otters: A. Sciberras, G. Attard 1, M. Galea Pace, Z. Radocz 6, D. Schembri, P. Szabo 1, K. Scicluna, S. Scerri, C. Saliba, C. Martin, A. Arrigo, O. Zammit, K. Grima Scott 1.

Refs: S. Licari, R. Spiteri.

Next fixtures

Friday: 6 p.m. San Ġiljan vs Sirens.

Saturday: 6 p.m. Neptunes vs Sliema.