What is water polo? ?It is a swimming based sport played by two teams of seven players ? with substitutes allowed ? whose object is to score more goals than the opposition,? says David Bowles, the secretary of Okehampton Water Polo Club. ?With penalties, corners, throw-in?s and off side there are certain similarities with football ? even ?diving? is illegal ? though the ball is caught and thrown and things are a bit wetter! Matches are played over four quarters of approximately eight minutes playing time (can vary dependent on level of match) and during this time players are not allowed to touch the walls or floor at any point. ?With the play moving quickly from end to end and no chance to rest players tire quickly and the reason you can swap out players for a break quickly becomes apparent once you have competed for a few minutes! ?Water Polo is a full on, often frenetic, sport that is great fun to play and is a bit different from the norm!?
