At the end of June, three G.B. Squads competed in the European Octopush Championships in Slovenia, Central Europe. Both the Men’s Elite and the Women Elite won Bronze. The Women’s Masters team (over age 32) competed as a guest team and as such were not placed. The Gold and Silver medals went to Dutch and the French respectively in both the Men’s and Women’s sections. The facilities were superb, the setting idyllic and the locals friendly, so the players had an enjoyable time, both in and out of the water.

The European Championships are held every two years by different host nations, with the sanction of CMAS. With this years host country being Slovenia, part of the old Yugoslavia until the early 1990’s, there was some uncertainty in the lead-up to the tournament as to who would actually enter. France left it to the 17^th June to confirm their entry! How do they do it? A total of eight nations came to Slovenia: Spain, France, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Slovenia and Yugoslavia. The competition was held over 6 days from June 21^st – 26^th with teams playing 2 games a day, 15 minutes each way.

Cliff Underwood was the B.O.A.'s Chief Referee, and Neil Dixon was the G.B. Water Referee. Cliff said "The facilities were fantastic and the pool was one of the best we’ve played in. which all led to a great championship. Overall, it was very well organised by the Slovenians, for their first major tournament."

At the opening ceremony the teams were officially welcomed by the Mayor of Kranj. Once the Tournament was underway it became apparent that the standard of play varied greatly, as did the refereeing. Neil Dixon said "there were some very mismatched games, with the standard of refereeing reflecting the nations' standard of play" There appeared to be 3 distinct divisions within both the Men’s and Women’s sections, and a huge gap between the top three Nations and the rest. This was highlighted by the results for the Bronze medals- the G.B. Ladies beat Yugoslavia 14-0 and the G.B. Men beat Slovenia 7-0.

It also meant that the some of the least experienced Referees had to officiate over the top games, which lead to a certain amount of tension! However Dave Simpson the G.B. Men’s Coach said he was "very impressed by the newer nations which lack the years in international experience of the top three".

As was to be expected at this level, there were some interesting interpretations of the CMAS rules, most notably by the Dutch. At the start they managed to surprise earlier opponents by repeatedly swimming the puck back into their own corner and "toying" with it there while their team subbed. At this point they would break out and attempt a runaway goal. This was very effective until the better teams came up with a counter tactic, which the G.B. Ladies did and managed to contain them. This way of play became quite a feature of the Championship, with the newer nations trying unsuccessfully to copy it. This lead to the suggestion of the G.B. Men that we should fold up the corners of the Dutch flag.

The Men’s final was hotly contested by France and The Netherlands. The French has beaten the Dutch in the Round Robin, and were more than a little upset to lose 2-1 on a penalty in extra time. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

So, was the B.O.A. pleased with the Squad’s performance? Antoine Mourad, G.B. Team Manager was "very pleased with all the teams, they did extremely well considering the expense to themselves and the low level of sponsorship available." Antoine was also G.B. Women’s coach, ably assisted by Ters Joubert. Dave Simpson, G.B. Men’s Coach felt that his team was "one of the best teams I’ve had in a long time for effort and commitment, and I hope they will stay together for the World Championships next year" He was impressed by their cameraderie and thought that Ivan Hutt had done a superb job as Captain. Similarly, Cliff was "very proud of the G.B. Womens Elite and Masters Ladies, they played their hearts out and will be a force to be reckoned with in Tasmania".

Midweek, Neil Dixon’s birthday heralded a historic event when all 3 squads went out for a meal (yes, it was pasta). The biggest hit of the evening was his chocolate birthday cake, not to mention the candle!

The final party was as riotous as you would expect, with players letting their hair down after months without alcohol or chocolate! That’s all we can say on that subject: what goes on tour stays on tour!

On the Sunday most people flew home, but some stayed on to explore Slovenia. The area we were in bordered on the Austrian Alps, and the scenery was as breathtaking as the Octopush!

The squad spirit was fantastic throughout the Tournament, and something to build on for the World Championships next year. In fact, it was inspiring, and the three teams really did represent a "United Kingdom".

By Gilly Spencer and Jane Fahy

Neil Dixon with his birthday cake

To order printed copies of this magazine, please contact Helen Field at publications@britishoctopush.org.