Branik Maribor Come from Behind to Win AWL Title
Water polo players of Branik Maribor, who finished the regular season of the Alpe Waterpolo League with only one defeat, secured the most important victory of the season at the Final Tournament in the Pristan swimming pool in Maribor. In the final they defeated Mladost Zagreb 19:18 after a dramatic match and a better penalty shootout (5:4, 1:6, 4:2, 5:3; 4:3).
Mladost Zagreb – Branik Maribor 18:19 (4:5, 6:1, 2:4, 3:5; 3:4)
Referees: Homovec, Terzić.
Mladost Zagreb: Batoš, Radman; Lokas 2, Kumrić 2, Čolović 1, Erenda 4, Rogić 1, Bolanča, Šorić 1, Dobrić 4, Maglica, Brčić, Sappe, Šindler.
Head coach: Damir Vincek.
Branik Maribor: Kulenović; Zaninović, A. Šantak, M. Šantak 2, Ul, Miletić 1, Kačič 3, Pevec 2, Hadžić 2, Bašić, Kazagić 2, Rajšp 2, Brčić, Bucalo 1.
Head coach: Milan Mitrović.
The Zagreb side, who finished the regular season in third place, defeated ASV Ströck Wien in the quarterfinal and Ljubljana Slovan in the semifinal of the Final Tournament in Maribor. On the other side, the hosts dominated the regular season and finished first with only one defeat – precisely against Mladost in the final round. Because of that they entered the Final Tournament directly in the semifinal, where they defeated Opatija.
Maribor started the final match in spectacular fashion. After a goal by Tim Kačič, they already led 5:2 after just two minutes of play. The Zagreb team quickly reduced the deficit to a single goal, but Miha Šantak restored the three-goal advantage (5:2). Before the end of the first quarter the visitors scored twice and hinted at a comeback.
The turnaround came in the second quarter when the defending champions scored six consecutive goals to take a 10:5 lead. The last two were scored by their top scorer Fran Dobrić. Only 71 seconds before halftime Matej Rajšp managed to score the only Maribor goal of that period.
In the third quarter the home side regained balance and with a goal by Aljaž Pevec reduced the deficit to 8:10. They trailed by two goals before the final break, when Miha Šantak scored again.
A real drama unfolded in the final eight minutes. The players coached by Milan Mitrović kept chasing the Zagreb team and midway through the quarter equalized through Rajšp (14:14). When Filip Rogić gave Mladost the lead with 74 seconds remaining, it seemed that the Zagreb team would secure the victory. However, Maribor refused to surrender. In the last attack, Anes Hadžić beat goalkeeper Nikola Batoš with six seconds left and forced a penalty shootout.
Maribor players showed more composure in the shootout. Rajšp, Harun Kazagić, Pevec and Miha Šantak converted their penalties, while the attempt by Vid Brčić hit the post. For Mladost, Dobrić, Rogić and Andrija Čolović scored, but goalkeeper Mateo Kulenović saved shots from Petar Erenda and Deni Sappe, securing the victory and the league title for Branik.
The medals and trophies were presented by the President of the AWL, Mr. Boštjan Tušar.
The Slovenian champions will face a new challenge already on Thursday. In Istanbul, they will compete at the Challenger Cup Final Tournament. In Group A they will face Zaibas (Lithuania), Vitoria (Portugal) and Enka Sport Club (Turkey). Group B will feature Sliema, San Giljan (both Malta), and Turkish clubs Galatasaray and Heybeliada.
Author Miha Štamcar
Photo Aleksander Sokler
