Ireland Finish U20 Women’s European Championships on a High
Ireland’s U20 women’s team finished their European Championships campaign on a high today, securing a hard-earned victory over Romania to cap a week of valuable international experience in Oeiras, Portugal.
Ireland faced a demanding schedule throughout the championships, coming up against some of Europe’s strongest emerging water polo nations and showing plenty of character along the way.
The campaign opened against Great Britain, with Ireland making an impressive start and racing into a 5-3 lead after the opening quarter. Great Britain responded strongly, however, eventually taking a 21-9 victory.
Ireland returned to the pool the following day with a determined performance against Czechia. The Irish trailed 6-4 at half-time and found themselves four goals behind heading into the final quarter, but refused to surrender. A spirited late surge produced four goals in the final period, although Czechia held on for a 12-9 win.
The result left Ireland bottom of Group E and into the 17th–20th place classification matches, where the team continued to battle hard.
Switzerland proved too strong in the opening classification game, securing a 13-7 win, but Ireland produced another competitive performance against Malta.
Ireland started brightly, leading 3-2 after the opening quarter, before the game developed into a tense, see-saw contest. The sides were level at 6-6 heading into the final period, with everything still to play for.
In a dramatic finish, Malta edged in front through two late goals from Chloe Amato to claim an 8-7 victory.
But Ireland saved their best response for the final day.
Ireland secured their first win of the championships against Romania today, providing a deserved reward for a squad that had shown resilience and determination throughout the week. With a massive 5 goals from Laura Casserly, a hat trick from Aine Hennessey and goals from Lydia McNicholas and Niamh Connery, the girls stormed to their win.
After a series of challenging matches and narrow margins, the victory gave the Irish team the chance to finish their European campaign on a winning note. It was an important result for a young group gaining experience at U20 European level and offered a confidence boost as they look towards the next stage of their international development.
While the week brought its share of tough results, Ireland repeatedly demonstrated their ability to compete, respond under pressure and stay in games against experienced opposition.
The championships also provide another important building block for the development of women’s water polo in Ireland, with players from clubs including Tribes, St Vincent’s and Clonard gaining valuable experience on the European stage.
Ireland leave Oeiras with a win under their belts, plenty of lessons learned and, importantly, a positive final chapter to a demanding week of international competition.
Well done to all involved across the week of action, including team staff Goran Sablic, Mariusz Smailek and Aveen Colvin for their work and dedication. A huge congratulations also to Ian Hanrahan who was part of the European Aquatics referee group that officiated across the tournament.
