Miloš Saković: Historic success, a new step in building a water polo brand in Valjevo

The most important news for Serbian water polo last week came from Split. Valis Vega qualified for the Premier Regional League after convincingly defeating Mornar in the second leg of the play-off away from home.

Thus, Serbia will have five clubs in the top tier next year as well. Valjevci joined the current champion Novi Belgrade, Crvena zvezda, Radnički and Šabac.

Valis water polo players secured participation in the playoff as the second-placed team of the A1 Regional League, behind Primorje, and ahead of Novobeogradski vukovi and KPK from Korčula.

The first playoff match was not promising, as Valis was defeated by Sailors in their pool with a goal difference of 12:13. However, Valjevci shone in the second leg at Poljud in Split. They dominated the second game and made up for the deficit from the first match, beating the host 17:10.

Analyzing the barrage of matches, Miloš Saković, coach of Valis, in an interview for the UVTS internet presentation, says:

We played badly in the first match in front of our audience in the full stands of the "Petnica" swimming pool. We analyzed the mistakes, we knew that we could play better in Split than in Valjevo, with the hope that it would be enough for success. The players gave their maximum in Split and broke the game with a 6:0 run in the second quarter and secured the victory.

Mornar entered the playoffs as a favorite and is considered a difficult rival, especially in the domestic pool, and the Serbian clubs also felt that.

The experience of playing in the playoffs of previous seasons certainly meant a lot to us. It is possible that Mornar expected an easier job in the second leg, after several good results in matches with Serbian clubs - a victory in Valjevo and before that a triumph over Partizan and a five-point loss against Šabac in Split. But we proved our quality when it was most important and achieved the greatest success in the history of the club.

Ambitions in the Regional League were the highest

The play-off matches with Mornar were third time lucky for Valjevci, because this year they took part in the play-off for the Premier League for the third time. Two years ago Šabac was better, and last season Solaris surpassed Valis by one goal in the overall score, who was very active in the 2023 transfer window and brought in ten reinforcements

Before this season, the ambitions of the club, when it comes to the regional competition, were the highest, and in line with the team we formed during the summer. Our goal was placement in the Premier League, either directly or through the playoffs. We knew that our main rivals were Primorac, which had strengthened considerably, and the talented team of Novobeogradski vukovi. During the league we had oscillations. In the first part of the Regional League, we unexpectedly lost to Proleter, but considering that the people of Zrenjan did not qualify for the group from 1st to 4th place, we did not carry that defeat into the second phase.

Valis entered the second part of the season with a changed lineup. During the winter transition period, five players left and three players came.

We changed the team, but the new guys fit in well. We did not reach the first place, although we managed to beat Primorac in the home pool. We defeated KPK Korčula twice, won three points in the duels with Vukov, but with a better score in the matches between each other. The road was not easy, but we achieved the ultimate goal.

Valis played in Europe for the second year in a row. In the European Cup, this time he stopped already in the first stage, in fourth place in the qualification group in Šabac, behind the hosts, Italian Ortigia, French Noisy le Sec, and ahead of Dinamo from Bucharest. The opponents were not easy, but there were also other obstacles.

We were really unlucky in the draw. We did not have easy rivals, but we did not only fight against them, but also against a strange judging criterion. In one game, we were awarded 23 exclusions. The six water polo players finished the game before the 32nd minute, so we also had to insert the reserve goalkeeper into the game in the field. I believe that it was influenced by the fact that referees without much experience on the international stage were delegated for the tournament, which should not happen, that Valis is a new club in Europe, it made its debut in 2022. We have to be persistent, to continue to work, both through better results and on the organizational level, to justify our current status and become recognizable in Europe as well.

Next is the fight for a new exit to Europe

Valis took the seventh position in the league part of the Serbian Championship.

We did not meet the goal in the domestic championship. In the second part, we wanted to play in the group from 1st to 6th place, among other things, because of the popularization of water polo in the city. By placing them in a higher group, we would bring the strongest Serbian clubs to Valjevo. Our audience would have the opportunity to see New Belgrade, Zvezda...

in action

The competition system this season, due to the crowded water polo calendar, was very inconvenient, especially for teams from the middle of the table. Only one defeat, against Novobeogradski vukovi, sent us to the group from 7th to 12th place. Even the victory over Radnički in Kragujevac meant nothing to us. The first part of the season was short, there was no opportunity for correction. The results also speak of the fact that we are worth more, because we won seventh place with ten wins in ten matches, we convincingly defeated most of our rivals.

Valis still has a chance to be in the upper part of the table. They will participate in the playoff for fifth place and exit to Europe. The fifth and sixth placed clubs of the Serbian Championship will win the right to play in the European Cup.

Our rival in the semi-finals will be the Wolves, so this season we will play at least five, if not six games with them, if there is a third match in the semi-finals. We know each other well. The Vuk team is made up of very high-quality young players. During the winter transfer window, they strengthened, and they are led by the experienced and excellent coach Nenad Vasilovski. I expect interesting matches, but, nevertheless, I would give the Wolves the role of favorite, which does not mean that our success would be a surprise.

The only super league player from the balloon

The successes of Valis significantly influence the popularization of water polo in Valjevo. The club was founded in 1993, made its debut in the highest tier of Serbian water polo in 2021 and has been a standard Superleague since then. Saković leads the first team from the 2021/22 season.

More and more children are applying to our school. But, as always, the most important factor is finances. This year there was no help from the state, which all water polo clubs were counting on. However, the City of Valjevo recognizes our results and stands behind us. It is still not the kind of support that, for example, the water polo club Šabac has from its city, which is one of the most positive examples. In Šabac, water polo is among the priority sports. Year after year we fight for more support. Through work and results, we are building a water polo brand in Valjevo. Valis has been declared the best sports team of the City of Valjevo three years in a row, underlines Saković, who was chosen as the best sports expert of Valjevo in 2022.

The working conditions are not ideal, and in that regard, the help of the local self-government would be a big wind at the back.

Valis is the only club in the Super League of Serbia that does not play or train in an indoor pool. We are the only "balloon club". In the Sports Center "Petnica" we use a pool that is covered with a balloon during the winter months. Petnica is not in Valjevo itself. We use the gym in the city, and we go to Petnica for training in the water. It would mean a lot to the club if they got an indoor swimming pool, together with a gym in the same place, continued Saković.

Working conditions limit us in many aspects. For example, when we bring in players from the side, the fact that during the winter they will train and play under a balloon, where the water is not always as warm as it should be, makes them hesitate whether to accept the club's offer.

Saković points out that, despite the limitations, the development of water polo, thanks to a lot of work, is going in the right direction. The club also has great support from the audience.

Even though Petnica is not in town, the stands are always full, we have an audience, there is potential to, with better conditions, take bigger steps forward.

Saković points out that the club's management, headed by president Nebojša Stojaković and director Saša Simić, is doing its best to provide Valis with the best possible conditions.

It says about the plans and ambitions of the club that Valis is one of the few water polo clubs that has as many as three coaches brought in from the side. Apart from me, there are also Dragan Milošević and Luka Petić, who work with the younger categories and help me in the first team. Few people will choose to finance three coaches who are not from the city, and my mission is not only to work with water polo players, but also to train coaches from Valjevo.

Challenges with the junior selection of Serbia, cooperation with Singapore

Saković has a rich coaching career behind him. He led the junior categories of Zvezda and Belgrade, the first teams of Crvena zvezda-Mladost, Singidunum, Belgrade, Nais, and left a significant mark in Asia. From 2017 to 2019, he was the coach of Indonesia. It is still active on the Asian continent, where they recognized the value of the Serbian water polo school and care about the training of coaches.

"I have a contract with the Singapore Water Polo Association to teach coaching seminars twice a year. The main recommendation for the invitation of the Singaporeans was Indonesia's victory over their national team and success at the South Asian Games in 2019. Then Indonesia won the gold after decades of dominance by Singapore, which held the title of South Asian champion for 56 years.

At the end of the season, there will be no rest for Saković, he will lead the junior selection of Serbia under 18.

I am grateful to the Serbian Water Polo Association for this opportunity. The generation of players born in 2006 and later is waiting for the World Cup in Argentina. We still don't know the rivals in the first phase of the draw, the draw is pending. I will do my best to justify the trust, both in terms of results in the championship, and in terms of achieving the goal that every coach who works with our younger selections has - creating players for the senior national team.