The second competition day at the FINA Men’s Water Polo World League Intercontinental Cup in Lima was similar to the first. Two games were one-sided contests, and one encounter turned into a thriller.
Canada defeated Australia in a penalty shootout – 19:18. This win is compensation for the Canadians, who lost to the USA on Day 1 after the Americans scored a winning goal ten seconds before the end.
Team USA defeated Brazil 14:9. Argentina thrashed Colombia 19:4.
FINA Men’s Intercontinental Cup, Lima, Day 2
Australia – Canada 18:19 (5:2, 2:4, 3:4, 4:4, PSO 4:5)
Australia: Pavillard 5 (1 PSO), Edwards 5 (1),Negus 3 (1), McJannett 2, Putt 2 (1),Power 1.
Canada: Halajian 4, D’Souza 4 (1), Gardijan 3 (1), Soleimanipak 3 (1), Djerkovic 2, Cote 1(1), Blanchard 1, Gonzalez 1 (1).
Australia arrived in Lima without its biggest star, Pro Recco’a Aaron Younger, but the “Sharks” were favorites in this match. They proved that with a good opening of the game. After less than two minutes, Australia led 3:0 and maintained a 3-goal difference until the first break (5:2). Canada cut the deficit in the second quarter (6:7), but the “Aussies” re-built a 3-goal advantage in the third – 9:6 and 10:7.
Olympian Blake Edwards netted the 10th goal for Australia in the middle of the third period. After that, Canada took control and produced a 5:0 run. The North Americans leveled at 10:10 before the last break. Rauel D’Souza and Bogdan Djerkovic continued their series and Canada had a 12:10 lead in the 26th minute. Australia struck back. Luke Pavillard netted three goals in a row (one with a man-up and two from penalty shots) to put Australia in front – 13:12. But then came Canada again. Matthew Halajian and Aria Soleimanipak gave Canada a 14:13 with 69 seconds remaining on the clock. But, 45 seconds before the buzzer, Blake Edwards scored a power-play goal to equalize (14:14) and the match entered the shootout.
The fifth round of the penalty shots decided the outcome. Australia’s Poot failed to score. At the other end of the pool, Aleksa Gardijan made no mistake and Canada recorded a 19:18 victory.
USA – Brazil 14:9 (4:2, 5:0, 3:3,2:4)
USA: Rhodes 3, Dodd 3, Stevenson 3, Gruwell 1, Q. Woodhead 1, D. Woodhead 1, Ehrhardt 1, Abramson 1
Brazil: Vergara 3, Guimaraes 3, De Freitas 1, Maizza 1, Coutinho 1.
Brazil fought hard, but it couldn’t surprise the USA. The Americans secured the three points, practically, in the second quarter. After five unanswered goals in the second period, they led 9:2. Midway through the third quarter, they went to 12:3 and there was no way back for the Brazilians, who didn’t give up until the final buzzer.
Australia – Colombia 19:4 (4:1,6:1, 5:0, 4:2)
Argentina: Camnasio 6, Corsi 4, Lopez 2, Antunez 2, Galimberti 1, Tilatti 1, Echenique 1, Martino 1, Lorenth 1.
Colombia: Bejarano 2, Vallejo 1, Mora 1.
Colombia still has to learn and work to catch up with the best South American teams. Argentina, led by Carlos Camnasio and Esteban Corsi, cruised to a big 19:4 victory.
1. USA 2 – 6
2. Australia 2 – 4
3. Brazil 2 – 3
4. Argentina 2 – 3
5. Canada 2 – 2
6. Colombia 2 – 0
Day 3 (March 9): Colombia – USA, Canada – Argentina, Brazil – Australia
