Week of Cup Qualifiers
This week will be filled with qualifiers for the national cup. The women have already done their part, with the qualification tournament concluded on Monday. In Šibenik, Jadran and Mladost claimed the first two places, securing a spot in the Cup final (November 27) in Zagreb. The men's qualifiers are yet to follow.
As for the men, unlike the women, they will play two qualification tournaments. This is logical given the larger number of competing clubs (a total of 11). The tournament hosts will be Dubrovnik and Split, with two top-placed teams from each securing a spot in the final tournament or Final Four of the Croatian Cup scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, November 26-27, at the pool by the Sava River in Zagreb.
At the Dubrovnik tournament (November 5-7), 5 clubs will compete – KPK Korčula, Jug Adriatic Insurance Dubrovnik, Mladost Zagreb, Medveščak Zagreb, and Mornar Split.
The Split tournament (November 7-9) will consist of 6 teams – Jadran Split, OVK Split, Solaris Šibenik, Primorje EB Rijeka, Zadar 1952, and POŠK 1937 Split.
Jug and Mladost as Favorites
For this occasion, we will briefly introduce the Dubrovnik tournament. The first two days of competition (Tuesday and Wednesday) will feature two rounds each, with the final round scheduled for Thursday morning.
It is clear that sports are full of surprises and anything is possible, giving everyone a chance. However, objectively, the strongest teams at the tournament in Gruž are the host Jug Adriatic Insurance and Mladost. Jug has recently had a series of somewhat weaker results, but they can still boast winning one tournament this season (Super Cup). What's not good for the Gospari team is the injury of their most experienced and one of the best players, national team member Maro Joković. Currently, it seems unlikely that Joković will play in the Dubrovnik tournament. The return of Sergi Cabanas after the injury is good news for Jug.
Mladost, as the second favorite, is on a winning streak with strong performances. The Zagreb team is still without the injured defender Ivan Buljubašić.
At the Dubrovnik tournament, the positioning of the top two teams is equally important. The first-placed team in Dubrovnik will then face the second-placed team in Split at the Final Four in Zagreb. Assuming Jadran will be the top team in Poljud, this would mean avoiding them in the semifinals. However, these are just predictions before the ball gets in the water.
Stream on the YouTube channel of the Croatian Water Polo Federation
The match that could attract the most attention is the encounter between Jug and Mladost. In this regard, an important notice.
The matches of the 4th round of the Dubrovnik tournament (Wednesday evening, November 6) will be available for viewing in a live stream on the YouTube channel of the Croatian Water Polo Federation
These matches include KPK – Medveščak (6:40 PM) and the derby Jug Adriatic Insurance – Mladost (8:15 PM), with the latter match featuring a commentator as well.
