Water polo girls make semi-finals, boys beat Newcastle

Saturday afternoon heralded the women’s opening match in the British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) Scottish Division against Edinburgh University.

By far one of the stronger Scottish teams, Edinburgh began the match well. Durham were skilled enough to pull out a 4-3 lead in the fourth quarter with a goal by Emma Christie. An equaliser in the last twenty seconds of the match caused coach Charlie Evans to call a hasty time-out to try to motivate a win by Durham, but the game ended 4-4.

The next game for the Durham women, held just an hour after their first match, was against Robert Gordon University, a team that had just thrashed Edinburgh. If this wasn’t enough to worry Durham, the knowledge that if they won this match they would be through to the BUCS semi-final also hung over their heads.

It soon became clear that Durham were the stronger team. Zoe Sycamore and Katherine Williams scored a magnificent number of goals, and along with the strength of attack and defence, the game finished with a score of 14-3. This more than made up for the draw in the first round, and guaranteed the Durham women a place in the semis.

The men’s team held the prospect of not only relegation from their division if they lost, but also the potential to beat their long time rivals Newcastle University.

Within three minutes Harry Meakins scored, and despite this early success, there was an almost immediate equaliser, and the goal chase had begun. A close range shot at goal by Newcastle almost lead to further points; Ed Johnson’s quick reaction kept Durham one goal in the lead.  Seconds later, however, a lob shot from Newcastle surprised Durham’s goalie.

Until the third quarter, Newcastle scored for every goal Durham shot. Impressive goals by Toby Gomersall, Ed Johnson and a hat trick by Joe Carr took Durham into a swift 7-3 lead in the fourth quarter. A round of pub golf later and both the men’s and women’s teams were feeling decidedly pleased and ready for more BUCS action.