Water polo at home
A pool with a lifeguard, goals and a coach; at home, throwing and catching on land.
What should we practise today?
Tell us where you are and who is playing. You get one card and the reason.
New to water polo? The game in a minute
Read this once before the first card.- The sport in short
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A team game in a pool, like handball in water. Two teams try to throw the ball into the other team's goal. In the full game the water is deep, so players tread water the whole time and may hold the ball with only one hand; only the goalkeeper may use two hands. Children start in shallow water, where they can stand, with a small ball and small goals.
- How a game works
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In the full game each team has six field players and a goalkeeper, and the game has four short quarters. A team must shoot within a set time. A goal scores 1 point and the team with more goals wins.
- Fouls
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A small foul, such as touching the ball with two hands, gives the other team a free throw. A serious foul, such as holding, sinking or pulling back an opponent, sends the player out of the water for a short time. Children's games have very simple fouls and no rough contact.
- Rules children break first
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- Pass a swim test first; a lifeguard watches every session.
- Never hold, sink or pull an opponent.
- Wear a cap with ear guards; no goggles.
- One hand on the ball (the goalkeeper may use two).
- At home and in the shallow end you start with
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Throwing and catching on land, swimming head-up with the ball, passing and shooting at a small goal, and small team games. The eggbeater, deep-water play and tactics are learnt at a club.
Words you will hear (22, in plain language)
- Cap
- The numbered cap each player wears, with plastic guards over the ears.
- Goalkeeper
- The player who guards the goal and may use two hands.
- Field player
- Any player who is not the goalkeeper.
- Field
- The playing area marked by ropes, the line across the goal, and the middle line.
- Size 2 or 3 ball
- Smaller, lighter balls for children.
- Head-up crawl
- Front crawl with the head out of the water and the eyes forward, to see the game.
- Leading the ball
- Swimming with the ball just in front of the head, pushed along by the arms.
- Scoop grip
- Lifting the ball from the water with the hand underneath it.
- Eggbeater
- Treading water with the legs circling in turn, like a whisk, to stay high.
- Sculling
- Moving the hands in a figure-of-eight to hold the body up.
- Vertical position
- Upright in the water, ready to pass or shoot.
- Pass to the hand
- A pass caught in the air, or one landing beside the teammate.
- Shot
- A throw at goal.
- Keep-ball
- Keeping possession with passes while the other team tries to take it.
- Counter-attack
- Swimming quickly to attack before the other team gets back.
- 2 m area
- The zone just in front of the goal.
- Block
- An arm raised to stop a shot or a pass.
- Free throw
- A pass to restart after a foul; a player sent out of the water for a short time for a serious foul.
- Power play
- Playing with one more player than the other team while their player is out; defending with one fewer.
- Joker
- An extra player who always plays for the team with the ball, in practice games.
- Penalty
- A free shot at goal after a serious foul near the goal.
- Mouthguard
- A soft tooth guard worn when contact is likely.
Try it, nothing to buy
Mark the space once. Every card starts from it.The cards, level by level
Nobody is late. A beginner of any age starts at Basic.Ticks and stars are saved in this browser only. Clearing the browser's data, or another browser, starts from zero. Carry them into the app
Basic 4 cards · show· hide Ball skills in shallow water: ball tricks, picking the ball up with the scoop grip, swimming head-up with the ball, passing to the hand and onto the water, shooting, a first turn in goal, then team games. Sessions run warm-up and ball skills, then drills, then games.
- b1✓ Throw and catch on land At home
- b2✓ Water confidence and swimming with the ball Park or court
- b3✓ Passing and shooting Park or court
- b4✓ Small-sided games in shallow water Park or court
Move on when the child meets the self-checks on b1 to b4.
Intermediate 2 cards · show· hide The deep-water game: the eggbeater (treading), head-up crawl with the ball, one-handed catching and passing, shooting from the water, defending the 2 m area, counter-attacks 2 v 1, and a mix of the swim styles used in the sport. The eggbeater is built up from sculling hands to arms held overhead.
Move on when the coach confirms the eggbeater is strong enough to play above the water.
Advanced 1 cards · show· hide Tactical systems, rotation, plans for playing with an extra player (six on five), penalties, powerful shots, and protecting the shoulders.
Teaching this at home
Movement, safety and the words at home. The sport itself needs water, a boat, a horse or a coach.
You do not need to know the sport. Each card tells you where to stand, what to say and what to look at. Pick one thing to say in a session and say only that. The first week looks messy; that is normal. End every session on one that works.
Cards marked At a club are taught by a coach. They tell you what the coach teaches, what is safe at home, and what to ask the club before your child joins.
How to warm up before playing is at workonfitness.com. The rules of the game are at sportsmaze.com.