WILTSHIRE’S water polo team have been crowned ASA South West Inter Counties Senior champions after triumphing at a competition at Millfield.

Swindon Dolphin players made up 10 of the 11-strong squad, including captain Andy Hicks.

Club colleagues Chris Selby, David Quinlivan, Will Smith, Ian Brewer, Mark Lawlor, Michal Trzeciak, Sam Dalton, Matt James and Jack Plumb were also selected, as was Salisbury’s Joshua Marshall.

The team kicked off the competition with a 10-10 draw against Dorset before defeating Cornwall 8-5 and Somerset 11-10 to finish top of the table and clinch the title.

Captain Hicks said: “The victory was a real team effort – every player contributed at both ends.

“Every game was close and even when up against it in our first game against Dorset we stuck together and our team spirit shone through.”

All the games were incredibly tight. In the first, Wiltshire trailed by four goals going in to the final period but rallied to level the game and would have won it had it not been for an incredible save by the Dorset keeper in the final few seconds.

Match two was a much easier affair, with Wiltshire working hard to opened up a three-goal lead early on, which allowed them to control the fixture comfortably.

The final game was a nail-biter as Wiltshire knew nothing short of victory would guarantee them the title. The team started slowly and were behind early on but did not let their heaps drop and came back to lead by three. Despite a late rally from Somerset, they were unable to close the gap as Wiltshire clung on to win the title.

Wiltshire’s U14 mixed team were also in action at the tournament, with the squad having been reformed this year following lots of hard work by Hicks, Helen Martin-Hicks and Jim Robinson from Bradford on Avon.

The team of Abigail Martin-Hicks, Henry Clark, Gleb Trotsenko, Joe Ashworth, Edward Bancroft, Kimberly Fowler, Ben McNab, Elliot Pengelly, Rosie Cusack, Jed Dennis, Thomas Musslewhite, Danny McGovern and Katy Cutler started the day with tough fixtures against two well-established teams in Gloucester and Devon.

Although, Wiltshire performed extremely well, they ended up with two defeats.

The next two fixtures were totally different as they beat Cornwall before narrowly missing out against Dorset, meaning Wiltshire finished a respectable fourth in the table.

Assistant coach Martin-Hicks said: There is lots of talent in this team. With only having a couple of sessions together this is an excellent achievement.

“We hope we can keep the team together and that they can move forwards and build for tournaments in future years.”