27/05/2019 (Article taken from Swim England Website)
Newton Abbot celebrated ecstatically as they won the U19 boys title at the Swim England Water Polo National Age Group Championships, beating City of Manchester 10-7.
Ollie Stanley put Newton Abbot ahead with an early goal and that, along with a hat-trick from Joe Hubble, helped them take a 4-2 lead at the end of the first period.
Their advantage extended to three goals in the second period as Tom Hunt got off the mark, but back-to-back penalties had Manchester trailing by just one goal midway through the period.
That was until Hunt put one hand on the trophy with another three goals to ensure Newton Abbot were 8-4 clear at half-time.
Manchester scored two goals without reply in the third period to give them hope of a comeback, but Hubble scored his fourth of the game in the final period and Hunt took his tally to five goals to seal the win.
Newton Abbot goalie Tom Manley produced a brilliant save in the dying seconds to show exactly why he was named both Most Valuable Player and Best Goalkeeper.
As his players celebrated with the trophy, Newton Abbot head coach Rhys Tamlyn said: “It’s been fantastic, we’ve been total underdogs the whole weekend, I think everyone would’ve written us off and thought we only played for third or fourth place.
“But people forget that the bulk of the team played in the South West regionals and won it last year and we’ve got a couple of superstars in the team.
“I thought getting into the final would be our final, and then we started bossing the game in the second quarter, we got ahead.
“It was a hanging on scenario towards the end but the boys really did dig deep and I think they’re a bit shocked as well.”
Team Manager Elizabeth Mann said: “I’m extremely proud. The bulk of the boys are from Newton Abbot and they’re all South West boys who have played together for the last four or five so this is like the coming together of all their hard work.
“A lot of the boys have been friends for four or five years and this is the end of their junior career really and it’s just great that they’ve ended on a high.”
City of Manchester may take solace from their improvement, having won bronze in 2018.
Oliver Wright and Thomas Manley have been selected for the England and GB Juniors men water polo squad. Congratulations!
Thomas Manley made an impact on the international scene as he was part of the Great Britain’s Men’s U19 side that reached the the LEN European Championships in Minsk, Belarus.
It was one of the highlights during a successful year for Manley, who also trained with the senior men’s side in the run up to the competition.
His success helped see him named as the Swim England Performance Athlete of the Year for water polo.
He said: “ I feel very honoured to win this award against all of the top water polo players in the country.
“I’m so glad I have been recognised for my achievements in the past year. I would like to thank my coaches and, most importantly, I can’t forget about them, my parents.
“They ferry me around everywhere, providing me with money, making sure I have a wonderful time and are always there supporting me, no matter what.”
Felicity Lamont Tuckett was selected to pay in the South west U14 girls team, in the recent National Inter regional Championships, held at Walsall. They were narrowly beaten by the North West, winning silver medal.
Congratulations to Newton Abbot water Polo U17 team who have retained the Devon Water Polo U17 Knock Out Cup for the 3rd year in a row, beating Devonport 17 -8.
Congratulations to Phil Shears - winner of Teignbridge Sport and Leisure Coach of the Year
As a coach at Newton Abbot, Phil gives up several hours a week to train the U15, U17 and ladies squads. He also coaches home and away for the above teams.
Phil Shears has successfully coached Newton Abbot U17 team to win the 2017 Devon League, Devon Knockout Cup and Bristol and West Juniors league.
He also coaches the Newton Abbot Ladies team who won the 2017 Devon Knockout Cup and the 2017/18 Devon Ladies League.
Adding to this success he has coached Newton Abbot U15s to win the 2017 National Age Group Championships in October 2017. To compound this success, the U16 team won the 2018 National Age Groups in April 2018, improving on the previous years Bronze medal position.
Phil is a much appreciated, highly respected coach at Newton Abbot, and within the county.
The U17 team came 2nd in the Junior Team of the Year catergory.
Thomas Manley came 3rd in the Senior Sportsperson of the Year.
Congratulations to Joshua Wardle (16) and Joshua Tomlinson (14) who have been selected to play for the South West U18 boys team in the Inter Regional Championships in Sheffield, in February.
Joshua Tomlinson has also been invited to the National Waterpolo Academy for 2004 born boys. The academy is for the top 30 boys in their age group, nationally.
http://www.swimming.org/waterpolo/otter-newton-abbot-win-national-titles/