East U16 Open Water Polo team travelled to Haberdashers’ Boys’ School determined to build on two excellent performances in recent years, having finished fourth in 2024 and runners-up in 2025 after the heartbreak of losing the final on penalties.
Preparations for the tournament a challenge with it only being confirmed a short time before the competition, leaving a huge amount of administration and a last-minute search for table officials, referees and lifeguards. Thanks to a tremendous joint effort from everyone involved, everything was in place for a successful weekend.
East 14–13 London
The boys opened their campaign against London in a fiercely contested local derby. Many of the players regularly compete against one another in the London League and knew exactly what to expect.
The game swung back and forth throughout the opening stages, with the first quarter ending 4-4. London edged ahead to lead 7-5 at half-time, but East refused to let the game slip away. By the end of the third quarter, the deficit had been cut to a single goal at 9-8.
The final period was a thrilling spectacle as both teams battled desperately for the win. Luka Guzijan produced an outstanding display, scoring five goals in the quarter to keep East within touching distance. With just two seconds remaining, Scott Griffin won a penalty after a superb late drive. Guzijan stepped up and calmly converted the spot throw to seal a dramatic 14-13 victory and give East the perfect start to the tournament.
East 17–16 North East Steelers
After just an hour’s rest, East were back in the pool to face the North East Steelers, who were themselves looking to bounce back after a narrow 9-7 defeat to the North West.
In keeping with the standard of the entire tournament, this was another high-quality contest that had parents on the edge of their seats from start to finish. The Steelers edged into a 9-7 lead at half-time, but East responded magnificently in the third quarter to turn the game around and lead 14-12 heading into the final period.
The Steelers fought back to close the gap to 17-16 with two minutes remaining, but East showed tremendous composure to hold on for their second consecutive victory.
Luka Guzijan once again led the scoring with an incredible 11 goals, while twin brother David added four more. The day ended on a high as the squad enjoyed an evening meal together before an early night ahead of Sunday’s decisive fixtures.
East 8–9 North West
Sunday morning brought the eagerly anticipated clash with the North West. Their surprise one-goal defeat to London on Saturday evening demonstrated just how evenly matched the tournament had become and only strengthened East’s belief that the title was within reach.
Despite the early start, the atmosphere was electric, with drums, vuvuzelas and vocal supporters creating an unforgettable backdrop.
East concentrated on a disciplined defensive performance and succeeded in forcing the North West into several uncharacteristic mistakes. Taking full advantage, East gradually established a lead and entered the final quarter 8-6 ahead.
Unfortunately, a determined North West comeback saw the defending champions snatch a dramatic 9-8 victory in the closing minute.
The East players were understandably devastated, knowing that the result had a major bearing on the destination of the championship trophy.
East 12–26 South West
Once again, East had only a single match break before returning to the pool, this time against the South West.
Having lost both of their Saturday matches, the South West had begun Sunday with a thrilling victory over the North East and arrived full of confidence. Unlike most of the other regions, East and the South West had each played only two matches on Saturday, making for an intense Sunday schedule with very little recovery time between games.
The South West started strongly, pressing aggressively from the opening whistle, while East struggled to recover both physically and emotionally from their heartbreaking defeat to the North West.
The fatigue eventually took its toll, and East suffered their heaviest defeat of the weekend, losing 26-12. The result dropped them to fourth place overall. East therefore retain their place in Division in 2027.
Although the final standings were disappointing after such a promising start, every player represented the region with outstanding commitment, determination and sportsmanship. Given the extremely limited preparation time, the team can be immensely proud of their performances.
Individual Honours
A special mention must go to Luka Guzijan for an exceptional tournament. As well as being voted East’s Most Valuable Player, he was named the tournament MVP and finished as the competition’s leading goalscorer with more than 30 goals across the weekend—an outstanding achievement.
East U16 Squad
Sebastian Velcherean, Luka Guzijan, David Guzijan, Noah Green, Dexter Atkinson, Scott Griffin, Tom Broadwith, Joshua De Almeida, Ronan Rodrigo, Apostolos Menepsakos, Jeremy Rotenberg, Daniel Blacker, George Vinter and Alexandar Nankovic.