Geraldton water polo round 9 preview: Women’s A-grade leaders Demons and B52’s face off

The women’s A-grade ladder leaders Demons have a comfortable gap over the competition, but they will be tested against second placed B52’s on Friday in the game of the round. For Demons, sisters Abbie and Sian McDonald are hitting form at just the right time while Maggie Spiers, India Newman, and Trixie Kerr have also been solid. The B52’s have Evie Prout, Maddie Pead and Emma Smith leading the charge. Rats will go up against the Composite side in the other A-grade match, which may be just what the team needs after a lack of players forced them to forfeit a couple of games in recent rounds. In men’s A-grade, the Demons will take on the Relics on Saturday. The Demons top the table and Zacc and Joel Cross have been scoring consistently in recent matches. The Relics have some momentum, and although they sit at the bottom of the ladder, the reformed side still poses a challenge for the stronger teams. The B52’s, reeling from their 10-6 loss to the Demons in round eight, will face Rats on Saturday. Rats have struggled for subs, posing a real test of their fitness and fortitude while the B52’s are relying on their young guns, Leo Prout, Jimmy Horsman and Callum Sojan for their goals. In men’s B-grade, Demons face off against Relics, and Rats clash with the B52’s. Both Demons and B52’s have led the charge this season and are difficult to split at the top of the ladder and the teams will be looking for strong wins before they face each other once more before the Christmas break. Only six points separate the top three sides in women’s B-grade, ladder leaders B52’s take on Demons, while Rats go up against a very tenacious Serpents side. In men’s C-grade, B52’s have a double-header against Rats and Demons, with both games played nearly back to back on Saturday afternoon. Women’s C-grade sees Rats Black take on Serpents Yellow on Friday evening, B52’s go against Serpents Green and Demons Yellow face Rats Orange. Geraldton Water Polo Association spokesperson Julia Gourley said they were excited to be back outdoors for summer. “This is our first season outside since the outdoor pool reopened, and we traditionally start the first weekend of December for Saturday games,” she said. “This will be beneficial for our Geraldton under-18 teams to play outdoors before heading off to Brisbane in January, where they will be competing in several different pools.”