Bohally water polo team bag silver

The Bohally Intermediate School water polo team’s long trip south proved well worthwhile when they came away with a silver medal from the South Island Intermediate Schools championships in Dunedin over the weekend.

Fourteen teams took part, with Bohally entered in the first division, gainst five other teams.

The first game in pool play was against Cathedral Grammar, and it took a while to recover from the long journey down as Bohally went down 3-0 in the early stages.  They fought back to win 5-4 with an outstanding goal from Koko Wong in the final quarter.

Next up were the reigning champions, Christ the King.  Bohally started slowly again and went 4-0 down by half-time.  Again, they fought back, but this time lost out 5-2.

The following morning, Bohally took on Canterbury Combined, historically a strong team.  This time Bohally went into a 2-0 lead and managed to maintain that advantage and came away with a 6-3 win, helped by some excellent defensive work from Hayley McCormick and a few outstanding saves by keeper Ben Lindfield.

Buoyed by that result, Bohally took on Dunedin’s best water polo school, Balmacewen, but again conceded early goals to go down 2-0. Their excellent team spirit surfaced again though, fighting back to 4-4, before scoring the decisive goal in the final quarter.  Desperate defensive work and tenacity ensured they held on during a tense final minute.

Last year’s runners up, Cobham Intermediate, were the final game in pool play, with Bohally played strongly throughout to run out 6-3 winners.

After finishing second in the division, Bohally met Christ the King in the final.  The first quarter was tight, with Christ the King holding a 1-0 lead at the end. Ultimately, their excellent keeper and strong outside shooting proved too much for Bohally, as they ran out decisive 8-2 winners as Bohally threw caution to the wind in the final quarter.

As well as being Bohally’s best-ever result at the SIIS, individual players also received tournament accolades. Hayley McCormick won Female Most Valuable Player for the tournament, and Ben Lindfield and Koko Wong were also named in the “tournament team”. The team as a whole were outstanding and received plaudits from officials for their play and sportsmanship. Thanks to Meaters of Marlborough for helping to fuel the team, and O’Donnell Park Barging and Kenny Barging for the loan of their community minibus.