On Saturday, Abingdon’s canoe polo team left for Bedford to play the first tournament of the Paddle UK Southern Youth Canoe Polo League. As both the first tournament of the year and our first time playing against these five teams, we were excited to see how we compared to others. The first match was against St Albans and, despite our slightly shaky start, we were pleased to draw against this strong side. Following this, we played well, leading to wins in the next four games. By the final match it is fair to say we were feeling tired. Playing against Meridian Canoe Club, whose team included two U21 GB players, was difficult, but we felt we were playing the best we had all evening, displaying a strong defence against the opposition. Ultimately we only lost by three goals – a result we were pleased with. The evening was also a great opportunity for some of the team to develop their skills as referees. We look forward to competing in the next round of the League in late January. Thank you to Mr Fleming for entering us into this tournament and running the training sessions this term.
Written by Rupert (Upper Sixth)
