Geraldton water polo: B52’s bag A-grade men’s three-peat in thrilling grand final decided by penalty shootout

B52’s completed a clean sweep of all men’s grades at the Geraldton Water Polo Association grand finals on Saturday, with the men’s top side edging Demons in a match that went down to the wire at the Aquarena. The men’s A-grade grand final was played late afternoon, with B52’s securing their third consecutive premiership in thrilling fashion after both sides were locked at 9-all at full-time. B52’s showed composure to prevail 12-11 as the match was sent to penalty shootouts. B52’s burst out of the blocks through early goals from Corey Smith, Leo Prout and Callum Sojan, the reigning premiers controlling possession and tempo, leading 4-1 at the first break. Demons’ captain Zacc Cross provided their lone reply and exerted his pace, skill and influence to lift his side sharply in the middle two quarters. He was everywhere, forming a superb partnership with Angus MacDonald as the pair repeatedly executed slick one-two plays to slice through the B52s defence. Their efforts saw Demons claw back the deficit, with scores locked 6-all heading into the final quarter. The final term was a true arm wrestle as Demons edged ahead through goals to Joel Cross and Cruz Henderson, while B52’s responded through Drew Tunbridge, Smith and Sojan to reclaim the lead. As both sides tired, the contest looked set to be decided by a single moment. That moment came in the dying seconds when Ted Kerr unleashed a last gasp goal to level the scores and force penalties. The shootout was as tense as the match itself. Both sides traded conversions and misses until the final round, where Leo Prout calmly slotted his attempt. Jack Deschamp produced a superb save to deny Demons and secure the premiership. Zacc Cross was named best in pool, backing up last year’s honours with another inspirational performance in defeat. Earlier on, B52’s continued their remarkable dominance, defeating Demons 11-4 to claim a sixth consecutive B-grade premiership. B52’s set the tone early, racing to an 8-nil lead midway through the third quarter — effectively ending the contest before Demons could find their rhythm. Shae Gould, Leo Prout, Callum Sojan and Ben Naisbitt were outstanding for the winners, relentless in attack and uncompromising in defence. Demons found late momentum through goals to Kaden Watts, Kasen Bunter and Finn Henderson, but the response came too late to trouble the B52’s. Kingston Warren was awarded best in pool after a disciplined defensive display that gave his teammates freedom to dictate the game’s pace and flow. The trifecta was completed in the C-grade grand final on Saturday morning, with B52s claiming an 11-8 victory over Demons in another tightly fought contest. B52’s took an early advantage through Lucas Ronan and Jack Hetherington, but Demons refused to go away and stayed within striking distance for much of the match. B52’s again showed their class in the closing stages to finish stronger and close out the win. Demons’ Kasen Bunter earned best in pool honours.