Mullumbimby has won this year’s Far North Coast Waterpolo championship with a 14–11 win over Southern Cross University at Mullumbimby pool two weeks ago.
The secret to the win was a good team culture that could successfully blend old and young players into a good squad, player Paul Bannister said.
The win capped off a season that struggled to gain momentum as two local pools were closed. This led to several forfeits and an element of the inknwon.
‘It was hard to gauge how well we were going as several games were forfeited along the way,’ he said.
It was a tough finals day including the grandfinal and the semis, meaning back-to-back games for the finalists.
The Mullumbimby team is made of several 60-plus-year-olds and a contingent of young players.
‘Southern Cross University tried to play fast but we used the ball and our heads,’ said Paul.
It was a close competitive final with Mullum just in front at halftime with the scores at 9–8. Mullumbimby was able to get the upper hand in the last quarter.
Last year the side were contenders as well, but the finals were cancelled after the floods.
‘We had great support from the Mullumbimby Pool, who stayed open so we could train,’ he said.
The winning team included: John Dixon, Mark Edwards, Kyle Sharpe, Pim Hendrix, Brian Donnellan, Greg Milham, Shannon Hunter, Scott Harvey, Nathan Deihm Tony Margan and Paul Bannister.
