The Malta national waterpolo team will be taking part in the LEN Europa Cup which will take place in Split, Croatia between Wednesday and Sunday.
"During this tournament we will be meeting the big guns of European waterpolo," ASA president Joe Caruana Curran said, ahead of a qualifying round for the European championships against Belarus.
The tournament in Split "will serve as a stern preparation for the team which in a few weeks' time will be facing Belarus", a double leg which will determine which country will be represented at the forthcoming European Waterpolo Championships to be held in Barcelona in June.
“During the LEN EUROPA CUP, Malta will be facing none other than Serbia on Thursday, then the Netherlands on Friday, Greece on Saturday and will finish off against reigning world waterpolo champions Croatia on Sunday. They are all difficult matches, but they will be of valuable experience to our team's preparations.
“We (ASA) think big, and this is why waterpolo in Malta has not only gained popularity but has improved to such an extent that today I rate it as the number one sport in Malta personally. I would also like to thank the sterling support coming from the authorities and our sponsors," Caruana Curran said.
Malta national waterpolo head coach Karl Izzo also spoke about the tournament and Malta's high hopes of qualifying to the big European Championship in Barcelona this summer. "We are currently in full preparation and this participation in the LEN EUROPA CUP will be very important for the team in general," he said.
“I am very happy with my squad, including the fact that 5 players from the national squad are currently involved in top level waterpolo with clubs abroad. This underlines the true potential of Maltese waterpolo at the moment."
The players employed abroad are Stevie Camilleri with Roma Nuoto, Ben Plumpton with Posillipo in Italy, Jeremy Abela in Spain with Molins de Rei and Andreas Galea and Darren Zammit, in Serbia with Dunav.
“Playing the first leg (of the qualifier against Belarus) away from home could be of an advantage but I would love to have full support for our team during the return leg at the National Pool on March 3," Izzo said.
Malta plays Belarus in Minsk on 24 February in Minsk, at 5pm with the second leg to be played at the National Pool in Malta on 3 March at 4pm.
The 13 players who will be in Split this week are: Nicholas Grixti (Sirens), Nicholas Bugelli (Sliema), Andreas Galea (San Ġiljan), Darren Zammit (San Ġiljan), Jeremy Abela (Neptunes), Matthew Zammit (San Ġiljan), Stevie Camilleri (Neptunes), Jordan Camilleri (Neptunes), Ben Plumpton (San Ġiljan), Aurlien Cousin (Exiles), Zach Mizzi (Sliema), Dino Zammit (San Ġiljan), Jake Tanti (San Ġiljan)