2012 NWPL Season Week One: Barracudas off to flying start
Watch This Space...Throughout this season of the NWPL, AWPI be providing a week by week coverage of all the results, big match previews and news and information.
Holly Lincoln-Smith en route to her 200th NWPL goal for the Sharks. (pic by Anthony Pearse/Pearse Photography)
The Brisbane Barracudas National Water Polo League club has made a fantastic start to the 2012 season, with both their men and women’s teams recording two victories from as many matches during the opening week.
The Barracudas women’s team, who are the three times defending league champions, got their campaign off to a flying start thumping Sydney University Lions by a combined total of 19 goals in their double header match up.
Aussie Stingers’ stars Jane Moran and Ashleigh Southern, as well as right-handed driver Nanda Stoltz each scored four goals in the opening 20-9 win, while Southern and Stingers’ captain Kate Gynther both netted three times in the convincing 11-3 game two display.
In other women’s fixtures, last year’s minor premiers Cronulla Sharks shot to the top of the table after recording easy victories over the Fyfe Adelaide Jets and the Hunter Hurricanes, while the spoils were shared in the west with the Longmont Fremantle Marlins and Victoria Tigers each claiming tight wins.
The Sharks’ three from three start was made all the sweeter with Aussie Stingers centre forward Holly Lincoln-Smith notching her 200th NWPL goal for the club during Sunday’s seven goal triumph over Hunter.
The Barracudas, who are aiming to continue their history making run of three straight premierships, boast five representatives from the Stingers Olympic train-on group, and head coach Fabio Pavanello is quietly confident the girls can produce again in 2012 and go all the way.
“To get three gold medals in a row was a first for the women’s National League competition, so to get four would be an even greater accomplishment,” Pavanello said.
“It was to great to get a couple of wins under our belt and get the ball rolling, and the aim for the season, apart from of course winning, is to firstly make the top six and give as much exposure to all our players as possible.
“The top four women’s team are all very strong this year, with each scattered with senior national players, so it is going to be tough but we believe we can do it and we’re look forward to playing in these big matches.
“It’s actually been a great start on the whole for the club, with the men’s team winning their two matches. They have recruited a few Aussie Sharks players, so we believe they will be a force as well and we’re very pleased with how things are shaping at the Barracudas.”
Led by Rhys and BJ Howden, the Barracudas men sealed 14-6 and 14-11 wins over Sydney Uni in their first week of games.
Their convincing victories have them in a good place to improve upon their fourth place finish last year and will look to maintain their unbeaten start with an away trip in Melbourne.
High profile recruits Billy Miller and Anthony Martin have been particularly good for the Barracudas with the pair scoring eight goals between them in their second match to elevate the club to fourth on the ladder, and equal second on points.
They sit behind the in form Victorian Tigers team, who pulled off the unheard of away feat of four straight wins in the west.
After getting out of the blocks quickly with an amazing 11-9 win over defending champions the Fremantle Mariners in game one, the Tigers stuck to their guns to rattle off three more victories, two over the UWA Torpedoes and another against the Mariners.
Imports Scott Carpenter (GBR) and Thomas Bruder (Slovakia) have led the way for the Tigers scoring nine and eleven goals each.
In other results, the Drummoyne Devils and UNSW Wests Magpies have too had winning starts recording convincing first up wins. Wests’ performance in defeating Balmain was particularly special with Aussie Sharks star Richie Campbell scoring his 200th goal in the NWPL
Highlights for the upcoming week two matches include the Tigers versus Barracudas clash in Melbourne, with Kate Gynther set to play her 150th game for Brisbane, while we have the first of the all-Sydney fixtures with Cronulla Sharks taking on Sydney University Lions.
For the full list of results and fixtures go to http://bit.ly/zeVYdV
For current men's ladder 
click here
For current women's ladder click here
