Water polo: Right royal splash

Anna Sieprath hopes she and her team-mates can make more ripples than Prince William when it comes to water polo this month.

One of New Zealand's Cinderella sports with an almost subterranean media profile, the New Zealand water polo set was preparing for this weekend's 45-strong international media onslaught on their National Junior Men's Championships in Henderson. The drawcard? Prince William, a keen water polo follower and player.

But one of New Zealand's lowest-profile and under-funded sports will be hoping that, in addition to the splash William will make in the media, the national women's team can continue to make waves at the world championships in Montreal from July 17-31.

The team slipped quietly out of town on a predominantly player-funded trip to the FINA world championships from July 17-31.

They are used to little fanfare and didn't get much recognition when they beat Australia for the first time last month.

Water polo must feel like they are swimming up river against traditional New Zealand sports - even though the last six months or so have actually been the most successful for New Zealand water polo teams.

In December, the junior men won the North American Cup, while the under-18 men also won an international tournament in Holland.

Also, the national schoolboy and schoolgirl teams both won the transtasman challenge series against Australia the same month.

The Australians were upset again last month when their highly-rated women's team (gold medallists at the Sydney Olympics) suffered the loss to New Zealand as part of a transtasman series in Canberra.

"The Australians didn't like losing at all," New Zealand women's captain Anna Sieprath said.

She is hoping her team can continue the good run in Canada.

She is delighted by the publicity Prince William's visit will generate - but would love her team to make headlines of their own.

Their pool includes Greece (silver medallists at the Athens Olympics), Russia (fifth in Athens) and Uzbekistan.

Although only 19, Sieprath has already experienced some of the hype she'll face in Montreal. She's been to two junior world championships and, as a member of the University of Hawaii team, competed at the massive NCAA championships in Michigan in May.

"The NCAA's were out of this world," she said. "The Americans take college sport very seriously."

 

Sieprath, from Auckland, was scouted while playing for a NZ age-group team in Hawaii in 2004. She snapped up the offer of a scholarship that covers what she says amounts to $100,000 in tuition fees and accommodation. She only has to pay for food.

In Hawaii she trains 20 hours a week and loves the lifestyle.

"As student athletes we have our own study hall and gym and the university is very understanding about time away for sport," she said. "They incorporate education and sport, whereas in Auckland it was hard to correlate the two."

Sieprath has been lucky to go so far with this sport, one she picked up relatively late at the age of 14, after being only fair at netball and swimming.

"I was never going to the Olympics with either of those sports so I combined the two," she said.

Sieprath's position in the team is as a left-hander. Swimming down the right-hand side of the pool, she has an advantage of a better angle to throw at the goal.

Six players plus the keeper make a side, the pool is at least 1.8m deep and there can be just as much action under the water as above it. "Girls pull on each other's togs to slow them down. What the referee can't see, they get away with, so you have to be reasonably tough and strong - I love it."

Sieprath may play in Europe, where she can earn 30,000 a year ($53,300). "New Zealand will be the only country in Montreal where players fund themselves," said New Zealand's Hungarian-born coach Peter Szilagyi.

"It's frustrating, New Zealand looks after traditional sports only and the girls get by because they are tough mentally and work hard."

Szilagyi, who's been here for two years, is aiming to lift New Zealand into the world top 10. The women are currently ranked about 20.

Szilagyi and Sieprath know that, when they return to New Zealand, financial support is not likely to pour in, even though water polo is the fastest-growing aquatic sport here, with 15,000 players and a 30 per cent increase in participation in the past two years.

Olympic entry would be massive, with a good performance in Canada a step towards Beijing. But progress will be gradual. Even Prince William can't change that.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY