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First London League tournament for new Hillingdon Penguin Under 16 team


London League, Water Polo

Over the past few months we have been assembling an Under 16 team to represent Hillingdon Penguin. Last Sunday, 3rd November, was their first opportunity to compete in the London Water Polo League: a Division 3 tournament in Croydon.

This was the first time Adam Maidment has coached a team in the LWPL:

“The performance from the players was absolutely phenomenal. In all three games, we showed great physical and mental strength to outplay the opposition and we came out on top.”

“This resilience shone through in our second game. At half time we were 5-1 down, so the team needed to rally and bring the game to the opposition. Clinching the draw showed the best of our spirit and togetherness.”

Hillingdon Penguin under 16 water polo team
Hillingdon Penguin Under 16 Team: Lucas Penny, Will Mitchell, Aryan Agarwal, Charlie Richardson, Dan Murphy, Oliver Castell, Georgia Mouratidi, Joshua Pan, Alfie Gilmore, Séan McHugh and Dan Usher, with coaches Adam Maidment and Shaun Hill.

 

“There’s still much to improve, both for the players and for me as a coach, however it is amazing to see the passion and desire from everyone. We hope to improve on this and come out stronger in our next tournament.”

And here’s what some of our parents said:

Karen Usher: “Congratulations to the whole team. The matches were so exciting to watch. I was particularly impressed with their performance and attitude in the second game. Thank you so much to the coaches. We’re very proud to belong to the Penguins.”

Tim Richardson: “Fabulous to see them competing again. Tight matches and great resilience demonstrated by all.”

Dave Castell: “ Well done Penguins! Three absolute thrillers. Great grit shown by all!”

Final scores
West London Penguin Hillingdon 5 : Beckenham 5
West London Penguin Hillingdon 5 : Kingston/Sutton & Cheam 5
Haringey Aquatics 7 : West London Penguin Hillingdon 5

Well done to Adam, Shaun and all the players, and a big thank you to all our parents for your commitment and support.

SwimTheIsland by Katherine Beesley


Masters Swimming, Open Water Swimming

During the first week of October I completed the annual SwimTheIsland event in Liguria, Italy.

The location of the swim was absolutely beautiful, and one of the best places to do an open water swim.

Swim the Island
The Island of Bergeggi.

 

I was one of the 1050 people who had entered the 3.5k ‘classic swim’. There were also 800m, 1.8k, 6k, 7.8k and relay swims happening on the same day.

The 3.5k route started at the beach in Spotorno, carried on along the beach back to Bergeggi and then around the marine protected island of Berggegi, which is known for its underground caves and dive sites.

Swim the Island
Just before I entered the pen for my start wave.

 

There was a good atmosphere before the race started, everyone was enjoying themselves and making the most of the good weather before we got into the water. After a very concise 20 minute safety briefing it was time to go!

Swim the Island
The race briefing.

 

We were let off in waves of 100 people, 5 minutes apart. Once I had managed to get out of the crowd as we entered the water, the swim out to the beach in Bergeggi was very enjoyable. The water was clear and warm, and in my opinion, a lot more inviting than lake swimming in the UK! There were lots of fish and coral, taking my mind off the fact that I had a long swim ahead.

The going got quite tough round the back of the island with currents and waves kicking in. At one point it felt as if I wasn’t moving at all. Luckily, my training with the Penguins stood me in good stead, and I was able to make it around the island. From there it was a nice gentle swim back into the beach and the cheering crowds that were waiting at the finish line.

Swim the Island
The beach where it started and finished.

 

I completed the swim in 1 hour and 13 minutes which was better than I was expecting.

After the swim I was able to soak up the atmosphere on the beach. The organisers put on a pasta party which was much needed to replace the energy used battling off the waves!

The event itself was extremely well organised, a safety boat was never more than five metres away, and there were people on hand to guide if you went off course. Apart from the excuse to catch the last sun of the summer, I would thoroughly recommend this race for anyone who is into open water swimming. It was definitely the most fun swim that I have completed, and the location was second to none.

SwimTheIsland: https://globalswimseries.com/swim-island-bergeggi/

Developing our Hillingdon Penguin under-14 water polo team


Water Polo

Last weekend saw junior water polo players from our Hillingdon Penguin section competing at London Swimming’s Under-14 Development Tournament at Whitgift School in Croydon.

Coach Shaun Hill said, “Transferring from the Summer to the Winter London Water Polo League means re-grouping our children from under 13 and under 15, to under 12, under 14 and under 16. Having a development tournament before the Winter League starts is really useful preparation.”

 

Water polo players wearing red Penguin t-shirts and water polo caps
Hillingdon Penguin Under-14 Development team:
Alexandra, Hannah, Robyn, Danus, Sam, Sophie, Lize, Thalia, Avi, Shai and Jacob

 

“Instead of treating it as a competition, not having to worry about winning meant I could use it as an experiment. As well as introducing two new players to competition for the first time, I could try players in new positions. There is so much you can only learn by competing; this development tournament was a brilliant opportunity.”

“Thank you very much London Swimming and Chris Martin for your organisation. The children enjoyed it and it’s nice to see our section of the Club growing in numbers with both a mix of boys and girls, which allows us to take part in these great events.”

My grandmother knitted this scarf in club colours in 1934 or 5…


History

Occasionally people contact us out of the blue to share stories about the Club. We were thrilled to hear from Mary Woodward this week…

Knitted scarf

 

“My grandparents were Welsh and moved  to live in Shepherd’s Bush in the 1920s. My granddad was a policeman and their two sons – Jim, my dad, and George – were both good swimmers in the Penguin club.

I think my grandmother knitted this scarf in club colours in 1934 or 5 when my dad was about 18. It is beautifully knitted and I do sometimes wear it.

Dad is in one of your pictures – the coach outing from Lime Grove one (9th along from the left, smoking!).

We lived in Lime Grove ’til 1953 and then moved out of London. I can remember going to galas at Lime Grove Baths though, and have photos of dad diving (very blurry). My nephew has all his medals.

Dad often talked about the club. He had a friend there who played water polo for GB in the 1936 Berlin Olympics.

I’d guess there was a commercially produced club scarf but my nan, being a great needlewoman, could not resist knitting them for her boys herself.”

Thank you, Mary!

 

London League Ron Turner Memorial Trophy


Award, Water Polo
Ron Turner Memorial Trophy
Ron Turner Memorial Trophy

 

The London Water Polo League has named their new primary junior water polo trophy in memory of Ron Turner. Ron was a much-loved Penguin who was highly respected for his skills and achievements during his playing career and for his life-long nurturing of youngsters coming into the game. His memory remains very dear to our Club.

The Ron Turner Memorial Cup will be presented to each of the winning junior teams in the London League for their photos and memories, with the individual players receiving a separate medal as a keepsake. The trophy ‘lives’ at Whitgift pool and is available at the conclusion of each junior competition.

Gill Turner, Ron’s widow and still very much an active member of Penguin with our masters swimmers, says she is delighted to see Ron honoured in this way.

A fantastic recognition of Ron’s passion for the junior development of our sport.

Read about Ron’s water polo history.