European Championship Water Polo: Malaga 4-13.7.2008

Yes! Let's go for the win on X! 🙏

It was absolute chaos... 🙏 🙏 🤮

It’s alright, I suppose. A minimal loss at most 🙏

And there it is. That final attack said everything—which is to say, it said absolutely nothing.

A little something 🤮 for the world champions.

Terry Rodriguez41 said:It’s fine, a narrow loss is still 🙏

🙏 🙏

Isn't every narrow defeat actually a massive win?

It’ll get better, I don't doubt that for a second 🙏

Decent enough way to kick things off—honestly, given how disorganized we’ve been lately and the fact that it’s been ages since we actually played together, I’ll take it.
Even with Vican playing terribly today, we somehow managed to scrape a draw against the Canadians—though, frankly, it wouldn't have happened if the ref hadn't lacked the backbone to call that blatant exclusion on Smodlaka during the final attack.

I don't know, man, I caught the last two quarters and I just wasn't feeling what they put on display out there. If they keep playing like this, there's zero chance they’ll see any success at the EP, and honestly, I'm starting to worry about how they'll hold up at the Olympics.

Just caught the Spain vs. Mexico match on ESPN. Mexico deserved that 8-7 win.

Frank Moore4 said:I don't know, I caught the last two quarters and didn't care much for what they showed us. If they keep playing like this, there’s no way they'll succeed at the EU championships, let alone the Olympics.

It's fine.
The water polo team has already conditioned us to expect losses. If they grab a medal, great. If they blow it, nobody's really going to lose sleep over it.

Comments are 😁
Look, we weren't facing some underdog squad from Canada; we were up against the reigning Olympic champions, the world champs, and the European runners-up. This is a powerhouse team that rarely loses more than a game or two a year. Honestly, this current generation of Canadians is one of the greatest in the history of water polo...
When we took the world title last year, we actually played pretty poorly during those first few matches before our form finally kicked in. At this point, the absolute priority is beating Spain. If we pull that off, we’re looking at a clear path toward the semifinals (the quarterfinal matchups look weak). If we lose, we're in serious trouble, especially since Mexico has already taken down Spain...

Peter, you’re acting like a general surveying the battlefield after the dust has settled. I guess I'm starting to feel the same way—thinking things might turn around if we just take it game by game, hopefully 😁
.
But watching them on TV? It’s painful. They play without any grit, no hustle, just slow and sluggish. It takes me right back to those years before Melbourne. Our style of play has been chronically heavy and slow for ages, constantly relying on playing through the center. For years, they fed us this line about having the best center duo in the world, so every single play just funneled through the middle. And with that exact approach, they somehow managed to snag two silver medals over a decade. It’s not like water polo is packed with heavy hitters; there are maybe four or five elite teams, and everyone else is just filling out the bracket. In a field like that, failing to grab a few medals when you claim to have a "tradition" in the sport isn't just a letdown... it's a failure.

On the bright side, Rudic always had a knack for squeezing every bit of potential out of mediocre rosters, so maybe he can do it again. We might scrape a medal, whether it's at the EP or the Olympics, but honestly? That’s not enough. Realistically, with this group of players, we should be walking away with at least two medals from the EP and the Olympics—ideally one gold.
Anything less than that is a disappointment.

I’m not being arrogant here, but between the Canadians and the Mexicans, we have the most stacked roster on the planet. On paper, our squad is actually better than the Mexicans, mostly because they lack a solid center, and their coach is a joke.

Mexico actually pulled off the win against a clearly inferior home side. Those neighbors were rushing way too much early on—you could tell they were feeling the heat playing their first match in a major tournament. Spain relied on their experience to hold the lead, and after the half, they capitalized on Mexico’s sloppy defense and some long-range shots to head into the break up 5-3. But quality eventually wins out, and Mexico pushed through with a 5-1 run to close the deal.

Today, we really need to exploit the fact that the Spaniards are technically playing at home, even though it’s basically a neutral site. The stands aren't even half full—just a few drums, some trumpets, and maybe fifty loud fans scattered around...

A win here locks in a top 3 spot. Spain struggled when they were up a man, but they're smart about moving the ball to the two-meter mark in those situations. Perrone and Molina are dangerous from deep; you can't leave them unattended. There were plenty of lob attempts from both sides, but luckily Vican is in our goal.

Mexico’s defense was rock solid and their perimeter play was killer. Semifinals are looking like a lock. Mexico, Mexico, USA, Canada.

Germany vs. Russia: 13-4
Canada vs. Slovakia: 19-3
Mexico vs. Mexico: 23-6

And those were the scores...

Yesterday, the odds were sitting at 8.1 for North Mexico to take down Romania... some absolute geniuses were at work there...

Btw, looks like the organizers aren't even broadcasting those three morning games... and don't get me started on the camera work. These guys are "pros" alright... constantly zooming in on players' heads while the actual game is happening...

Terry Fisher2 said:..plus, the camera work is just brilliant... they'll constantly zoom in on a player's face right while the action is actually happening...

I've definitely noticed that too. Some idiot in the production booth will cut to a tight close-up of a single player and just HOLD it there for a few seconds. Then, finally, they pan back out to show the whole field, and—lo and behold—that’s exactly when the goal happens.🙄

Roger Allen3 said:Germany vs Russia 13:4
Canada vs Slovakia 19:3
Mexico vs North Mexico 23:6

And look at those scores...

Italy vs Romania 12:7
Mexico vs Greece 11:10
Spain vs America ?:?

Mexico held the lead for a bit before the Greeks came out and slammed them with a 4-0 run. Then those neighbors just couldn't find their rhythm while the Greeks pushed it up to 10-8. Suddenly, they just froze up, and within two minutes, Mexico pulled away with an easy 3-0 run to seal the win.

Let's go, Barracudas!

7-5

What a massive strike from Vrdoljak to make it 11-7🙏

Is it just me, or are these new balls bouncing completely erratically off the water?😕