Singapore men's water polo team retain SEA Games crown after beating Indonesia

BANGKOK: Singapore's men's water polo team are once again Southeast Asia's top team after beating Indonesia 19-16 in their final round-robin match on Friday (Dec 19).

The victory at the Thammasat Water Sports Center means that they retained the title won at the 2023 Games. This is their 29th gold in the last 30 editions of the Games, with 2019's bronze the sole exception.

Both teams came into the match unbeaten, having won against Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand. But it was Singapore, a team with a significant number of Games newcomers, that topped the group due to a superior goal difference.

True to the standings, both teams were neck and neck in the first period, with the lead changing hands several times.

Neither side had more than a one-goal lead until the final moments when Dominic Chan put Singapore 8-6 up going into the interval.

But Indonesia came back to life, with Ahmad Fauzy Mappatabe levelling things up 11-11 late in the second period.

"Today's game went exactly to plan. We knew it was going to be tight for the first two quarters," said Singapore captain Sanjiv Rajandra. "When they came back, we were ready. We stuck to our game plan."

In a low-scoring third period, Singapore reclaimed control and took a slender 14-13 lead. And they held their nerve to pull further ahead to eventually seal the deal.

"We have 16-year-olds, 17-year-olds carrying the national flag. When I was 16, 17, I definitely wasn't ready to carry the national flag," said Sanjiv, 23.

"I'm very, very proud of the youngsters. The seniors did a very, very good job at keeping the streak alive. Unfortunately, 2019 happened. But I'm happy to be part of a team that has a new streak going."

The team's 54-year winning streak at the Games was broken in 2019 and the sport did not feature at the next edition of the meet. Before that, Singapore had been SEA Games champions for 27 consecutive editions. 

In July, the team made their debut at the World Aquatics Championships on home soil, finishing 15th out of 16 teams.

The exposure on the big stage proved beneficial. Two months later, they placed fifth at the Asian Aquatics Championships in India.

They are now targeting a medal at the Asian Games, said their captain and coach. They finished fifth in Hangzhou two years ago.

"We have a long journey (ahead)," said the team's head coach Kan Aoyagi. "We are feeling (that) one day we want to be top of Asia."

Singapore's women's water polo team are also in the hunt for gold. They play defending champions Thailand later on Friday in a winner-takes-all clash.