Water Polo Lingo

There are so many words that are specific to each water sport, it just gets too confusing. Here you can find all the definitions you need to get you started if you are just starting to play or getting into spectating. Water Polo Caps –The rules of FINA state that the home team must wear white caps and the visitors wear a coloured cap. The coloured cap is usually blue but will vary occasionally. Goalkeepers must wear red caps so they are identified easily. Each player has a number on their caps 1-13. The goalkeepers wear cap numbered 1 or 13. Driver – The driver is the player who are specialists in escaping the defenders and must be extremely fast to swim towards the goal, with excellent hand-eye coordination for an accurate shot. Point – The attacking player who is usually positioned in the centre of the pool. The point is the leader in communication with the rest of the team. Personal Foul – Major and penalty fouls are personal fouls. If a player commits 3 fouls they are excluded from the rest of the game. Time out – A stop in play called by the referee. Turnover – A loss of possession by fouling, a shot clock violation or poor possession. Dry pass – A pass where the ball doesn’t touch the water. Wet pass – The ball lands in the water when passed. Lob Shot – A shot that is thrown over the rest of the field, over the hands of the goalkeeper and into the net just below the bar. Quarter – A water polo game is played in quarters. The length of each quarter is based on the level of play. International matches usually have 8 minute quarters. Swim off – At the start of each period of play a swim off happens to determine who gains possession. The ball is released by the referee at halfway and when the referee signals they swim for it. Shot clock – This does what it says on the tin, it is a clock which counts down how many seconds the team have to shoot at the goal. The clock resets to 30 seconds when possession is gained by the opposition on rebound. Want some help with other aquatic sports? Check out our Diving vocab and our synchronised swimming dictionary.   Picture - With thanks to Flying Cloud