Canada, Spain and Italy Advance to FINA Women’s Quarterfinals; Russia Disputed Win Over Holland

Holland's Sabrina van der Sloot and Marloes Nijhuis after Saturday's loss to Russia. Photo Courtesy: Beeldboot/Gertjan Kooij

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Editors Note: After review, it was announced Sunday that the protest by Holland regarding a questionable timeout by Russia in the third quarter of their play-in match was denied. The official final score is: Russia 11, Holland 10. The following recap has been updated to reflect this decision.

Day Four of women’s water polo play at the FINA World Championships contained drama galore, as the tournament’s final eight were finalized, with Australia, Canada, Spain and Russia joining group winners Greece, Hungary, Italy, and the USA. In the day’s biggest upset, the Russians defeated Holland 11-10 in a match marred by controversy. The Dutch protested a call midway through the third quarter that caused a five-minute delay as officials sorted out the details.

After falling behind 4-2 in the first quarter, Holland head coach Arno Havenga replaced starting goalie Debby Willemsz in favor of Laura Aarts. The move did not pay immediate dividends as Russia raced to a 7-3 second period lead. But a run of five straight goals put the Dutch ahead by 8-7 in the third period.

After Russia had equalized at eight, a dispute with three minutes remaining in the third quarter left the Holland coaches frustrated to the point of protesting the match. At issue was possession when the Russians called a timeout; the Dutch contended they had the ball, which would award them a five-meter penalty shot due to an illegal time-out request by Russia.

Despite strenuous protests by Havenga, Holland lost both the argument and the match. Instead of moving into the quarterfinals to face Italy, the Dutch—who have lost back-to-back games after starting off the tournament with wins of 17-2 against France and 20-8 versus Japan—will now likely face New Zealand in a classification match.

Holland coach Arno Havenga .Photo Courtesy: Beeldboot/Gertjan Kooij

“The situation is that we put a protest in about the decision of the referees concerning this timeout,” the Dutch coach said following the match. “The Russian coach called the timeout in the moment when we were in possession of the ball, and—if you see the regulations—that is a penalty for us, but they gave the timeout for them.”

As reported by FINA, Holland’s protest will be heard on Sunday.

No-doubt winners from Saturday included Canada, which crushed New Zealand 16-3 on the strength of four goals from Joelle Bekhazi; Spain, a 13-5 winner over China on four scores by Beatriz Ortiz Munoz; and Australia, which got four goals from Zoe Arancini in a dominating 16-2 victory over France.

With the denial of Holland’s protest, the pairings for Tuesday’s quarterfinal matches are as follows: Group A winner Italy facing Russia; Group B winner and tournament favorite USA against Australia; Hungary, winner of Group C, playing Canada; and Group D’s top finisher Greece against Spain.

The Dutch are again the odd team out; and their frustration will be palpable. They missed out on qualifying for the 2016 Olympics in Rio while hosting the qualification tournament, and finished behind Hungary in the 2016 European Championships despite beating the Hungarians in group play. In this tournament, Holland lost 10-8 to host Hungary on Thursday; a confirmed loss to Russia will complete a spectacular fall for a once likely medalist.

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Pro Women Fitness

6 years ago

Gosh :p