The most decorated club in the history of German water polo returned to the throne. After four years, Spandau 04 is the German champion again.
The Berliners ended Hannover’s three-year dominance and finished an almost perfect domestic season. They achieved 14 wins in as many games in the regular season, and after that, they added seven consecutive victories in the playoffs.
Today, Spandau beat Waspo Hannover 12:9 in the third match of the final and won its 38th title as the German champion, the first one after 2019.
This season, Spandau water polo players suffered only one loss in the domestic competitions. Hannover beat them in the final of the German Cup.
2023 German League, Playoffs, Final (best of five), Match 3
Spandau 04 – Waspo 98 Hannover 12:9 (3:3, 4:1, 2:2, 3:3) – the score in the series 3:0
Spandau 04: Baksa, Gbadamassi 1, Prioteasa 2, Cuk 1, Tkac 1, Juengling, Strelezkij 1, Marziali 1, Chiru, Kholod 2, Restovic 1, Shepelev 2, Bozic. Head coach: Kechagias.
Waspo 98 Hannover: Benke, Corusic, Schipper 1, Froreich, Schuetze 2, Radovic, Lozina, Macan 1, Kubisch, Gansen, Benic 2, Basic 3, Grosse. Head coach: Seehafer.
The third match of the final was the only one that ended after 32 minutes of play. There was no penalty shootout.
However, until the middle of the fourth quarter, today’s encounter was almost the same as the match played on Saturday, but the teams switched roles. Yesterday, Hannover had a 5-goal lead and Spandau equalized at the finish.
In the third game, Spandau dictated the pace. Hannover cut the deficit, but it wasn’t able to equalize.
After a balanced first quarter, Spandau netted four unanswered goals in the first five minutes of the second period and earned a solid 7:3 advantage. Hannover reduced the gap before halftime.
Still, shortly after the middle break, Spandau built a 5-goal lead (9:4), with action goals from Russians Dmitri Kholod and Roman Shepelev.
Late into the third quarter, Hannover started climbing back – Basic converted two man-ups for 6:9. The visitors kept the momentum and cut the deficit to one (8:9) by the middle of the fourth period. The Berliners’ center-forward Bilal Gbadamassi ended Spandau’s goalless phase that lasted for almost ten minutes and made it 10:8. Schuetze gave Hannover hope with a goal for 9:10 in the 30th minute.
However, the finish belonged to Spandau. Slovak Marek Tkac doubled the hosts’ advantage. Italian Luca Marziali set the final score with a power play goal in the last minute.
This season, Spandau won the German League and the German Super Cup. The Berliners caused some surprises in the Champions League but didn’t qualify for the Final Eight.
All champions (1912 – 2022): Spandau 38, Rotte Erde Hamm 11, WF 98 Hannover 8, Hellas Magdeburg 8, Duisburger SV 98 7, ASC Duisburg 6, Wurzburg 05 5, SSF Barmen 4, Waspo 98 Hannover 4, Germania 1887 Berlin 2, Weissensee 96 2, Frankfurter SV 1, Nikar Heidelberg 1, Luftwaffen SV Berlin 1, Wiener Amateur SV 1, Bayern Nurnberg 1, Waspo Hannover-Linden 1, SV Cannstatt 1.
Third-place playoffs (best of three)
White Sharks – ASC Duisburg 7:11 (2:2, 0:1, 4:4, 1:4)
White Sharks: Stankovic 3, F.Rotermund 1, Portisch 1, Jaschke 1, Hulshoff 1.
ASC Duisburg: Eidner 5, Seifert 3, Kuppers 2, Gusakov 1.
ASC Duisburg – White Sharks 12:9 (2:3, 5:2, 3:3, 2:1)
ASC Duisburg: Kuppers 4, Seifert 2, Gusakov 2, Schwark 2, Simic 1, Gergelyfi 1.
White Sharks: Portisch 3, J.Rotermund 2, jaschke 2, Stankovic 1, Hulshoff 1.
ASC Duisburg was the favorite in the 3rd-place playoffs and didn’t let White Sharks surprise them. ASC recorded two solid victories. They won bronze and have the right to start in the qualifications for the 2024 Champions League.
5th-place playoffs (best of three)
OSC Potsdam – Ludwigsburg 6:9 (2:2, 1:3, 3:2, 0:2)
Ludwigsburg – OSC Potsdam 8:7 (2:4, 2:0, 1:0, 3:3)
7th-place playoffs (best of three)
Krefeld 1972 – Neukolln Berlin 6:9 (3:1, 1:1, 1:5, 1:2)
Neukolln Berlin – Krefeld 1972 11:5 (2:2, 2:1, 5:2, 2:0)
Bundesliga, Group A, final standings: 1. Spandau 04, 2. Waspo Hannover, 3. ASC Duisburg, 4. Waspo 98 Hannover, 5. Ludwigsburg, 6. OSC Potsdam, 7. Neukolln Berlin, 8. Krefeld.
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