WATER POLO

by CHARLES F. CICCIARELLA
3rd ed., March 2000, 140 pgs., $14.95 
ISBN 978-0-89641-348-1





Water polo players play, often well into middle age, for fun, fitness, and for the sheer love of the game. This book is written as an introduction and guide to water polo hoping to share the fun, the fitness, and the love of the sport.

Textbooks for sport skills, such as this, necessarily have a structure that is different from the sport itself. Whereas the sport is extremely dynamic and spontaneous, the textbook must be divided into discrete chapters covering such parts of the sport as basic skills, offense, defense, and so on. A sport should be learned the way it is played; a dynamic and spontaneous sport should be learned dynamically and spontaneously. Rather than attempting to study and learn material presented here chapter by chapter, it should be learned all at once, initially in crude approximation and subsequently in greater precision. As skills are being practiced and mastered, learning will be enhanced by a quick first reading and later a more careful reading of the games performance.

CONTENTS

Chapter 1: THE SPORT OF WATER POLO

Chapter 2: WATER POLO SKILLS

Swimming
Deep Water Accelerations and Turns
Treading Water
How to Pick Up The Ball
How to Hold The Ball
Dribbling and Carrying the Ball
Passing
Faking
Individual Defense

Chapter 3: OFFENSIVE STRATEGY

The Fast Break Offense
The Hole Man Offense
The Double Post Offense
The Rotation Offense
The 6 On 5 Offense
The 3 - 3 Zone
The 4 - 2 Zone
Situational Tactics
Other Tactics
Use of Time Outs
Stalling
Substitutions

Chapter 4: DEFENSIVE STRATEGY

The 3 - 3 Zone Defense
The 2 - 2 - 2 Zone Defense
The 1 - 2 - 3 Zone Defense
The Fake Zone Defense
The Zone Press
The Player for Player Defense
The Player Disadvantage Defense
The Two Player Disadvantage Defense
Situational Tactics
Other Tactics
Goal Tending

Chapter 5: CONDITIONING

Kinds of Conditioning
Season Training Plan
Assessment of Needs
Specificity of Training
Improvement in Endurance
Improvement in Strength and Power
Improvement of Flexibility
Cramps and Residual Muscle Soreness
Injuries
Nutrition and Ergogenic Aids
Environmental Factors

Chapter 6: PRACTICE ORGANIZATION & ROUTINES

Organization of Practices
Warm-up Exercises
Conditioning Exercises
Skill Drills
Variations of Water Polo
Safety Notes

Chapter 7: STARTING A WATER POLO PROGRAM

Why Start Water Polo?
Facilities and Equipment Needed
Finding Competition
Planning and Running a Game
Planning and Running a Tournament