OJ Eagles Team Wins 2017 National Water Polo Championships

The OJ Eagles continued their dominance of the Old Eds National Club Water Polo Tournament and Universities Water Polo Championships at the King Edward VII School in Houghton from 5 to 8 October.

OJ Eagles beat Maties 7–2 in the final, making it their ninth win of the tournament in the process. The win was also the 10th title win for the team in the past 11 years. The Eagles were rampant in the first quarter as they put three unanswered goals past the Maties sluggish defence. Maties last-gasp attempts to restore parity proved futile as the OJ Eagles put the final nail in the coffin to put the result beyond doubt in the third quarter.

OJ Eagles coach, Vlado Trninic told the Rosebank Killarney Gazette that his team owed their purple patch to hard work and commitment.

“The OJ Eagles players have been by far, for over a decade, the most successful water polo club in South Africa, and as a result of their hard work and commitment to the game, they have achieved and won, many times over, everything that can be won in SA water polo,” said Trninic.

Commenting on the team’s game strategy going into each game, the coach said having fun was a huge part of it. “We go into every game with our own game plan and try to be the best we can be at that moment. We definitely had lots of fun and enjoyment in each game as the players were very fit and properly prepared.

“However, after winning our 10th title in the last 11 years, we are focusing on the Gauteng League and the SA Nationals next year.”

Etienne le Roux of OJ Eagles was voted the Best Men’s Player of the tournament and the University of Cape Town’s Julian Lewis as the Best Goalkeeper.

Thanks to the Rosebank Killarney Gazette for the write-up. You can find the original article here