POLO REPORT
Southwest League Polo 2007/8

Youth Canoe Polo Report

Taunton Canoe Club youth members took part in the Division 3 Southwest Regional canoe polo competition that started in October in Bristol.

Having to attend 4 out of 6 tournaments, Taunton youth played every team twice over the 4 nights.

They had a really good season managing to win 16 of the 18 games and only losing 1 and drawing 1 game. This is a great achievement for them, earning promotion to Division 2 next season, playing at Millfield Pool.

With the help of Somerset Community Foundation we managed to secure a Local Network Fund grant that enabled to us to buy a complete set of canoe polo equipment (kayaks, paddles, helmets, spraydecks & buoyancy aids).

With all the new equipment that we received it has allowed more youth members take part in the sport and attend training sessions during the summer months.

We currently have open sessions on Thursday nights opposite the Taunton Cricket Club from 6.30pm. Anyone is welcome to come along to have a go.

A little bit about Canoe Polo:

Polo requires excellent teamwork and promotes both general canoeing skills as well as a range of other techniques unique to the sport.

Two teams each with five players on the pitch at any one time (and up to three substitutes) compete to score goals in their opponent's net which are suspended 2 meters above the water. The ball can be thrown by hand, or flicked with the paddle.

Pitches can be set up in swimming pools or any stretch of flat water.

Boats are specifically designed for Polo and are shorter (3m) than typical kayaks which gives them fantastic manoeuvrability. Paddles are very light weight and designed with both pulling power and ball control in mind.

The full results for this season are shown below.