Roses 2010 was probably for many people the first time they had heard of York University Canoe Polo Club, and for even more the first time they had watched an actual match, but to quote a random stranger who I happened to be stood next to – “I can’t believe I’d never heard of this sport before – this is amazing! How long have we been playing this again?”. Although one slightly less admiring spectator did also say “Oh my God what’s the point – why don’t they just get in and swim?”.
That was before the matches started however, and great matches they were too. The ladies team put up a valiant effort, but were sadly defeated 6-0 by the Lancastrians in spite of some truly impressive saves on the part of York’s goalie. The open match was one to be remembered though, consisting of fifteen minutes of tension, frenzied paddling and a few choice words from the audience.
Half time saw the score still at 0-0 and one member of the York team receiving first aid for an injured shoulder. Soon into the second half though Lancaster scored the first goal, to a massive round of (some slightly grudging) applause. Not to be outdone, within less than a minute the Yorkies managed to equalise, then in the last three minutes to score again so it looked as though it was all over at 2-1 York. Sadly that was not the case, and the Lancastrians managed to end the game in style. Having been pushed in their player managed to maintain possession of the ball as he rolled back up, minus his paddles, to score the final goal, meaning the match culminated in a 2-2 draw and a point each for York and Lancaster.
It was an incredible match, featuring some truly beautiful saves and even more beautiful goals. One of the best things though was the atmosphere on the sidelines, with York receiving shouts of encouragement from people who unashamedly had no idea what the rules were – “He just pushed him in! Can they do that? Oh, they can? PUSH HIM IN!”.
So for anyone who was watching and thought “Wow, this is an excellent sport – I should give it a go!” or even just fancies the idea of a sport that allows you to push people upside-down in a kayak in a pool, I would highly recommend getting in touch with us at [email protected], coming along and giving it a try. We train on Saturday afternoons on the river Ouse, are very beginner friendly, and have a habit of ending training sessions with a barbecue and a couple of beers in the sunshine. Besides which, we need to teach the Lancs a lesson at Roses 2011!