Bristol Central Water Polo

Mens National League Match Reports & Statistics 2006

2006 Season
PLD
W
D
L
F
A
PTS
GD
Lancaster
17
17
0
0
280
123
34
157
Cheltenham
17
11
1
5
209
176
23
33
Bristol
17
9
0
8
171
162
18
9
Manchester
17
8
1
8
136
155
17
-19
Rotherham
12
8
0
9
208
199
16
9
                 
Portobello
17
10
0
7
158
168
20
-10
Welsh Wanderers
17
7
1
9
153
171
15
-18
Polytechnic
17
5
0
12
116
161
10
-45
Penguin
17
4
1
12
111
168
9
-57
Birkenhead
17
4
0
13
132
191
8
-59

As at 10th December

Leading Goal Scorers    

Club
Goals
Games
1
S Carpenter
Lancaster      
100
17
2
T Curwen
Lancaster
64
17
3
A Scholefield
Rotherham
61
19
4
D Laxton
Welsh Wanderers  
60
19
5
R Leighton
Rotherham
31
7

 

Exclusion Offences    

Total
Birkenhead
169(19)
Bristol
122(17)
Cheltenham
108(17)
Lancaster
146(17)
Manchester
138(17)
Penguin
166(19)
Polytechnic
153(19)
Portobello
123(19)
Rotherham
120(17)
Welsh Wanderers
151(19)

Reports from 4/5 November:

Bristol Central
6
V
10
 Manchester
Quarter Scores
2 – 1   
3 – 4 
5 – 9
6 – 10

Bristol Central's 1 st team undertook their longest trip of the season to Lancaster last weekend to play Manchester and Local Rivals Cheltenham - both teams having recently returned from playing in European Cup Competitions - in the 2 nd phase of Division 1 National League.

The team were weakened by the absence of top scorer John Hutchens – family wedding - & Brad Poole whose wife Emma was expecting their 1st baby so this depleted side travelled more in hope than expectation.

Manchester was the opponents on Saturday and this young fit side didn't start well against Central. 2 early goals from captain Thresher & medical student Williams – just returned from placement in India   - were just rewards for Central hard work in attacking play. By half time however Central had switched off mentally and let in some weak goals through poor defending to be behind at half time 3 – 4.

The 3 rd period saw Central run out of attacking steam and 4 unanswered counter attack goals by Manchester saw Central fall further behind 5 – 9. In the final period Central played a much tighter defensive game but this coincided with a period of very poor attacking options and general bad shooting on goal. This led to a final score of 6 – 10 and Central's coach Rhys Tamlyn felt it was a missed opportunity to collect points off this inexperienced team.  

Scorers : Thresher (2), Manion (1), Williams (1), Morris (1), Tamlyn (1). 

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Bristol Central
13
V
12
Cheltenham
Quarter Scores
4 – 2   
6 – 4 
10 – 7
13 – 12

Mixed Results but Great Victory against Arch local Rivals Cheltenham

Sunday's game against arch rivals Cheltenham was a much more exciting affair and was the League's most entertaining game of the weekend with a big crowd cheering on both sides. Central lost to Cheltenham 4 weeks ago and a poor start was the cause. But this game started very much differently when Central Jumped to a 2 – 0 lead. Poor defence and slow reactions on possession change  gifted Cheltenham 2 goals but further long shot strikes by Coles and Manion restored a 2 goal advantage to 4 – 2 at the end of the first quarter. A tough and energy sapping 2 nd period saw Central lose the 2 goal lead but then this spurred Central's attacking threat into action and goals by Sissons & Thresher meant Central went into half time 6 -4 ahead. More attacking  fireworks began in the 3 rd  period with Central stretching their lead with superb shots by Manion & Coles and mesmerising centre forward play by Thresher 2, to stretch their lead to 10 -4 . At this point both referee's intervened with some unusual and mystifying decisions for both teams. Thresher picked up a serious misconduct exclusion which meant Central played for 4 minutes with a player short. 3 quick goals by Cheltenham meant they reduced the deficit to 10 – 7 at the end of the 3 rd period but the game was far from over. Central added goals from Sissons & Tamlyn when Central were restored to a full team and a further great goal by Williams who lobbed the keeper from close in saw Central go to 13 – 9 with 2 minutes left. A further misconduct exclusion on Greg Harper which took everyone by surprise saw Central frantically trying to defend this lead with a player short. With veteran Sissons in foul trouble and out of the game  and the team visibly tiring, Cheltenham scored 3 quick goals to put Central under intense pressure for a final 30 seconds but they held out to win 13 – 12.

A gutsy and at times inspired performance from all the players left Central enjoying the long trip home although the victory comes at a cost.  2 game suspensions for both Thresher and Harper mean Central will lose key attacking options for the return match against Cheltenham on Sunday 19 th November at Loughborough.

Scorers: Thresher (3), Williams (2), Sissons (2), Manion (2), Coles (2), Morris (1), Tamlyn (1)

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Reports from 9/10 September:

Lancaster
15
V
8
Bristol Central
Quarter Scores
3 – 3  
7 – 4 
11 – 6
 15 – 8

Ref's ruined game

This is normally a case of sour grapes but this quote is attributed to every neutral observer who spoke to Coach Tamlyn afterwards including other match officials. A mad 2 minute period by the officials meant Central collected 4 completely unfathomable majors and lose a 3 – 0 advantage . Game was virtually ended when Morris joined Captain Thresher on 3 majors halfway through the 2 nd period. This meant a tough baptism for the bench of Coles Harper and debut man Brad Poole. As Lancaster continued to counter attack and pulled away to lead 11- 6 at halftime,  Even a rotund Coach Tamlyn was forced in to the action and a poor man up shot option by him summed up the team's luck. Central stuck manfully to the task and showed great spirit in continuing to play right up to the end. Poole's excellent debut was marked by a good goal in the final quarter. 

Team : Crawford, Sissons (2), Harper,  Hutchins (1),  Figes (3),  Manion (1), Morris, Coles, Poole (1), Tamlyn, Thresher. 

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Portobello
5
V
18
 Bristol Central
Quarter Scores
1 – 6
3 – 10
5 – 14
 5 – 18  

Fitness & solid defence key to win 

This match was played 3 hours after Porty's 1 st game in Division 1 and the lack of rest really showed. Central had only an hour's extra rest but it didn't seem to stop a great counter attacking high tempo start. With clever defensive play against Porty's 2 centre forwards a lot of top pocket tapping carried on throughout the game as they tried to long shot their way out of trouble against a much improved  ‘keeper Crawford. As comprehensive a win as the scoreline suggests. 

Team : Crawford, Sissons (1), Harper (1),  Hutchins (7),  Figes (3),  Manion,  Morris (2), Coles (1), Poole (1), Tamlyn, Thresher (2).  

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Rotherham
6
V
10
Bristol Central
Quarter Scores
2 -1
3 – 4
4  - 7
 6 – 10 

Fabulous all round team performance stop potent Rotherham Attackers  

Best quality game of the weekend on Sunday morning attracted a decent crowd . It didn't disappoint with 5 current internationals and 4 ex Internationals on show. Central stuck to playing low on Rotherham's centre forward Scholefield throughout the game and this tactic was key to how Central controlled the game. Excellent stop stopping from Crawford meant Central could counter attack with commitment. Good rotation of players meant they maintained the defence and counter attack plan. Every player's workrate was exceptional and Scholefield was restricted to only 1 goal and Central had another top pocket tapping smugness about them. Central's best all round performance under Coach Tamlyn's guidance and although losing Figes to Spanish club Metropole for the remainder of the season is a major blow, the team now realise they can seriously challenge Lancaster to the top position again.

Team : Crawford, Sissons (2), Harper (1),  Hutchins (3),  Figes (2),  Manion,  Morris,  Coles,  Poole (1), Tamlyn, Thresher (1). 

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