GBR-BUCS Senior Men’s Team World University Games Naples, ITA. July 2019 Results
Click here for all our pics and video clips of the GBR team at the 2019 FISU Universiade in Naples
Game 1, GBR v Russia
Great Britain opened their World University Games campaign with a tough 25-1 (5-0, 7-1, 7-0, 6-0) defeat to Russia in Naples.
Playing against proven internationals, Great Britain put up a decent fight and their performance was much improved from the recent EU Nations.
Lewis Daly was on target for Great Britain with a fine finish, while goalkeeper Dylan Green pulled off an excellent penalty save in the first half.
Great Britain squad v Russia
Dylan Green, Connor Carpenter, Lewis Daly, Jordan Elliot, Matt Madden, Dan Paddon, Michael Patterson, Rudi Polster, John Pratt, Christopher Sturtevant, Isaac Wass, Aaron Winstanley & Peter Pickford. Coach: Tim Dunsbee
Game 2, GBR v South Korea
Great Britain were on fire at the World University Games in game 2 with a sensational 17-9 (4-1, 5-4, 5-1, 3-3) victory over South Korea in Naples
A superb overall team performance from Great Britain, who built on a strong start to comfortably close out the game in the final quarter.
Great Britain squad v South Korea
Dylan Green, Connor Carpenter, Lewis Daly, Jordan Elliot, Matt Madden, Dan Paddon, Michael Patterson, Rudi Polster, John Pratt, Christopher Sturtevant, Isaac Wass, Aaron Winstanley & Peter Pickford. Coach: Tim Dunsbee
Game 3, GBR v USA
Great Britain’s senior men’s team faced the might of the USA, one of the giants of international water polo, in game 3 of the 2019 World University Games in Naples, and what a fantastic shift our athletes put in.
Quarter 1 was a close affair with Dan Paddon scoring on the extra to close the period 1-3.
Early in Q2 Elliot won a centre forward’s penalty and Captain Winstanley made no mistake with a bounce shot into the top right corner. Great defence and 2 consecutive world-class saves from Green saw GBR reach the turnaround at 2-5.
Q3 began with an early goal exchange; Pratt responding to a USA conversion with a fine goal from 6m to make the score 3-6 .
Head Coach Dunsbee made fine use of the new rules with GBR making rolling substitutions on the half way line but mid-way through the 3rd period Madden received his 3rd major final and was sidelined. The US took advantage and the score moved out to 3-12, and then they took control of the match as the structural differences between the USA v GBR training programs began to hit home.
The GBR players were magnificent throughout and should be very proud of their performance, well done lads!
Final Score GBR 3 – USA 17 (1-3, 1-2, 1-7, 0-5)
GBR scorers; Paddon, Winstanley, Pratt
Game 4, GBR v France
Great Britain’s aim of a consecutive top-eight finish at the World University Games remained in sight after a battling 15-9 (3-1, 4-4, 4-2, 4-2) defeat to France in Naples.
Connor Carpenter was ruthless in attack against the French with a brilliantly executed hat-trick of goals, while John Pratt (2), Christopher Sturtevant, Dan Paddon, Lewis Daly and captain Aaron Winstanley were also on target.
Another improved performance from Tim Dunsbee’s young squad, who are now focusing on tomorrow’s crunch classification match against Japan, 5.30pm start local time.
The result saw Great Britain finish fourth in Group A, behind water polo powerhouses USA, Russia and France – all teams who are heavily funded and focusing on future Olympic qualification.
USA finished 9th at last year’s FINA Men’s World Youth Championships in Hungary, while Russia placed 10th. France, meanwhile, came 10th at the 2018 European U19 Championships in Belarus.
With the 2020 Olympics being held in Tokyo, Great Britain’s university squad would now face another nation – Japan – that has a substantially backed water polo programme in place.
Dylan Green, Connor Carpenter, Lewis Daly, Jordan Elliot, Matt Madden, Dan Paddon, Michael Patterson, Rudi Polster, John Pratt, Christopher Sturtevant, Isaac Wass, Aaron Winstanley & Peter Pickford. Coach: Tim Dunsbee
Game 5, GBR v Japan
Great Britain will play in the 9th/10th place final after a fiercely-contested 18-10 (9-2, 3-4, 2-0, 4-4) defeat to Japan at the World University Games in Naples 🤽♂️ 🇬🇧
Playing against a well-drilled, quick and efficient Japan, Great Britain’s players each put in a huge defensive shift and were unfortunate to lose by such a margin.
In attack, Great Britain’s top scorer in Naples, Dan Paddon, was on fire as he hit five to take his tournament tally to 12, while captain Aaron Winstanley, Michael Patterson, Connor Carpenter, John Pratt and Isaac Wass were also on target.
Following a disappointing first quarter, it was fantastic to see Great Britain regroup and respond brilliantly, but ultimately, Japan – who qualified for the Rio 2016 Olympics and are investing heavily in water polo ahead of next year’s Games in Tokyo – proved just too strong.
Great Britain squad v Japan
Dylan Green, Connor Carpenter, Lewis Daly, Jordan Elliot, Matt Madden, Dan Paddon, Michael Patterson, Rudi Polster, John Pratt, Christopher Sturtevant, Isaac Wass, Aaron Winstanley & Peter Pickford. Coach: Tim Dunsbee
Game 6, GBR v South Korea, 9-10 Classification game
Great Britain stormed to a powerful 15-7 (6-0, 3-1, 4-3, 2-3) victory over South Korea as they finished their World University Games campaign in style
After a strong second half against Japan, Great Britain continued that attacking momentum to take an early 6-0 lead and comfortably won the second and third quarters to ensure they triumphed in this 9th/10th place final.
Centre-forward Jordan Elliot was ruthless in front of goal against a very aggressive defence as he top scored with three, while Great Britain displayed their offensive prowess with nine different players all firing home.
This clash against South Korea was the third between the two nations in recent years and the results illustrate how Great Britain are improving with each match – winning 11-7 (5-3, 3-1, 3-2, 0-1) at the 2017 World University Games in Taipei, followed by last Wednesday’s 17-9 (4-1, 5-4, 5-1, 3-3) victory in the Group stage here in Italy.
As the team now prepares to fly home on a high, it’s clear Tim Dunsbee’s squad progressed magnificently throughout the tournament and hopefully – with the right backing – these players can continue to build on this success and return to the international stage soon.
Finally, here’s a massive thank you for all the incredible support here in the stands and back home 👏 👏 It’s been a great adventure
Great Britain squad and overall scorers at the 2019 World University Games
Dylan Green, Connor Carpenter (7), Lewis Daly (4), Jordan Elliot (7), Matt Madden, Dan Paddon (14), Michael Patterson (3), Rudi Polster, John Pratt (7), Christopher Sturtevant (4), Isaac Wass (3), Aaron Winstanley (6) & Peter Pickford. Coach: Tim Dunsbee
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