The Varsity Blues men’s water polo team headed into its season this past weekend with hopes for a fourth consecutive OUA championship win.
The team travelled to Chicago to participate in a tournament as part of preparation for the OUA championship scheduled for November 18–20. The Blues will participate in several similar tournaments leading up to the championships, making several trips south of the border.
The structure of the OUA water polo season means that Blues fans will have only one opportunity to catch the team in action this year. The Blues will host a tournament from October 14–16, with teams from three schools and two clubs participating. “We want to try and get as many supporters out as possible for our upcoming tournament,” said Blues men’s water polo head coach Vlad Tasevski. “We want to show how hard we’ve worked and also we don’t want to disappoint our supporters here.
“It’s basically our only showing at our home pool this year, so it’s a great opportunity to come and see us play…It’s going to be a great event.”
The Blues dominated in the OUA 2010 championship; the team went 4–0 in the tournament to capture its third consecutive title. The Blues are looking to continue the tremendous success they have had over the past few years but at the same time are careful not to let success in previous seasons lead to complacency.
Tasevski insists the team is not resting on its laurels and is focused on achieving its goals for this season. “The goal for the team is always to win no matter what, but we approach every year as a new season.
“We don’t really look back to previous years at what we achieved there … because every season is different — different players, different teams — so we don’t really rely on previous season[s] to forecast how well we’re going to do this year … It’s a new beginning for us and we’re starting from zero, from scratch.”
Entering his third year as head coach, Tasevski previously spent two years as an assistant coach after four seasons as a player for the Blues. During his time with the team, they have won six of the last seven OUA championships, and he has come to embrace the pressure that comes with being involved in the program.
“There’s always pressure, especially if you’ve been so successful all the previous years, and U of T is one of the biggest schools and one of the most successful teams over the recent history,” Tasevski said. “It’s always the team to beat by everyone else, by every other school … that’s why we try and work hard every night. We’re here five days a week. We work hard every night. We try to get better every night.”
The Blues are making sure they put in the time in the pool needed to continue their winning run, but Coach Tasevski stresses that the team’s success is based on more than talent and training. “Trying to make the team chemistry work is the most important thing for any team,” he said. “You can have as much talent as you want to, but if the chemistry of the team is not there, if the team spirit is not there, then you wont get too far, so every year we build the team spirit and a sense of belonging to a team for each player.”
The team feels it deserves more recognition and is looking to get it in their upcoming tournament. “It’s important to emphasize our track record over the past couple of years. It’s not by accident,” Tasevski said. “It has all been achieved by hard work from the guys primarily, and all the support we get from the school as well. We probably have the best pool in Ontario so these are great conditions to prepare for the finals.
“We work hard every year to try and win so we’re not taking anything for granted. It’s all about hard work in the end. So if you want to win something, you make sure you deserve it.”
