After 7 years in Division 1 of the National League Tyldesley’s senior water polo team are to be relegated to Division 2.

The team finished in 9th position in the league and under the current composition (this is to be reviewed  at the NWPL AGM on 15th January) were required to play off against the 2nd placed team in Division 2 Welsh Wanderers. 

The clubs agreed to stage the decider prior to the AGM as 11 of the Welsh players would be heading to Australia in the New Year for the Commonwealth tournament.

Wanderers struggled to contain Mike Cowburn in the early stages. He was unstoppable in the pit, scoring all our team’s goals as they built a 5-3 lead at the start of the second period.

However, the match then turned rapidly in Wanderers’ favour, two goals from distance in less than a minute by Andy Holt levelling the score.

A Dan Laxton goal and another by Holt made it 7-5 at the halfway stage to the Welsh team, for whom Charlie Hinder managed the only goal of the third period.

Mike roused Tyldesley again at the start of the final period, netting twice to reduce the Wanderers’ advantage to just 8-7. But further goals by Chris Taylor and Holt established a three-goal advantage which, with goalkeeper Tim Marshall and Hinder excelling in defence, was never likely to be challenged and the game ended 10-8 in Wanderer’s favour.

Tyldesley: Mark Hurst, Martin Rimmer, Mike Cowburn (6), Paul Cowburn, Dominic Derbyshire, Jonathan Stafford (1), Lee Cooke, Alex Jessop, Colin Bent (1), Chris Gilbertson, Matthew Cutt, Martin Barrett.

Team manager Alan Cowburn reported “It has been noted that most teams within the 1st division have strengthened their squads, with a large influx of overseas players.  It is important to understand that most teams within the 1st division are university cities and have the ability to draw players from the campuses.  In effect, we found, right from the start that we were playing in a far more competitive league with some teams barely recognisable from last season.

The players, in what has proved to be a very testing season on the back of last year’s successes, as ever have been fully committed and played as well as the opposition has allowed.”