Queensland Thunder water polo rookies training for a place at the world youth championships

Queensland Thunder water polo rookies Tenealle Fasala and Phoebe Leech come from fantastic swimming stock where their fathers represented Australia, but both girls were reeling in their own sporting milestones.

Queensland Thunder water polo rookies Tenealle Fasala and Phoebe Leech come from fantastic swimming stock where their fathers represented Australia, but both girls were reeling in their own sporting milestones.

Fasala, Leech and a third Thunder player, Alice Campbell, were part of an 18-member national squad training to make the Australian youth team to contest the FINA World Women’s Youth Water Polo Championships in early September.

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Fasala, who hails from Oxley, and Bardon resident Leech said being exposed to training with and playing against the best players in Australia through the national league was lifting their performances.

Molly Nasser, Tenealle Fasala and Alice Campbell prior to a recent Queensland Thunder game. (AAP Image/Richard Walker)

“Training with world class athletes like Bron Knox and Abby Andrews, it really makes you step up. It is harder and you have to work harder to get better,’’ Leech said.

“I am a left hander and Abby Andrews is a left hander so working with her, just watching and learning, it makes such a difference.’’

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Fasala agreed: “I play the same position as Bronnie (Knox), so just to be able to turn to her and say: ‘how did you do that … she not only tells me, but shows me in the water how to do it.

“And then you take that into your games at the weekend against other world class athletes.

“When you are training with Bronnie or Abby, you don’t want to give them a bad pass.

“It is okay to make mistakes every now and again, but you want to do your best for them. “You are more on your toes, more aware in the water.’’

Tenealle Fasala, right representing Met West in 2018. She is pictured alongside another exciting sporting prospect, Lyvante Su'emai who is a field athletics exponent.

The girls will be eager to impress at a national camp this week knowing the squad of 18 will be trimmed further prior to the youth world championships.

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“Everyone is going to be improving every time we see them,’’ said Leech, a Stuartholme School alumni.

The Thunder squad listening to coach Benn Lees and Australian player Abby Andrews (No. 4). (AAP Image/Richard Walker)

“We want to show we are just as good, show what we can bring to the team.

“Because of the national league, everyone is improving, we are consistently learning.

“We go up against people who are bigger, stronger and we have to adapt quickly.’’

Both from the Barracudas’ club, the girls loved water polo from the moment they started.

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Leech was just aged 10 when she kicked off in the sport, while Fasala’s swimming coach at the Musgrave pool recommended water polo to her mother.

Phoebe Leech, far right, pictured in 2018 at Stuartholme with Thunder team mate Molly Nasser, left, and old class mates Sophie Fern and Abbey Pomeroy.

“I went to Barras straight away, did my first session and it was really good,’’ said Fasala, an Ipswich Girls Grammar School past student.

Water sport comes naturally to the pair.

Leech’s dad was a 1986 Commonwealth Games swimmer while Fasala’s father Greg was a member of the famous Mean Machine (1984 Olympics, gold medal relay team).

“Our dads used to train together at the institute (AIS),’’ Leech said.