Two time water polo Olympian Keesja Gofers determined to take junior club to national glory (WPA season-long deal (Underage nationals, AYC, AWL))

She’s determined to become a three-time Olympian in two years, but for now Aussie Stinger Keesja Gofers is relishing the chance to realise a different dream at the WPA youth nationals.

Keesja Gofers has not given up on her dream of becoming a three-time Olympian in Paris in 2024 Olympics, but for now she has another dream to achieve.

The Aussie Stinger, who is spending time out of the water as she awaits the arrival of her first child, has turned her attention to giving back to the club which started it all.

Gofers has taken the coaching reins of junior club Sydney University’s under-16 girls side, and will pilot them to the Australian Water Polo Youth National Championships in Perth from January 9-19.

READ THE FULL LIVE STREAM SCHEDULE FOR THE NATIONALS

The championships will be exclusively live streamed on KommunityTV including every game from the show pool at HBF Stadium in Perth.

Gofers said it had been a dream of hers to be able to help grow the next generation of Stingers, but due to her intense schedule as an athlete it wasn’t possible.

Aussie Olympian Keesja Gofers has taken a break from playing, but it hasn’t kept her out of the competitive side of water polo.

However, after falling pregnant earlier this year, she decided to go back to her roots and jumped at the chance to become a coach for the club.

“This is my first year of coaching at the club because with training myself, it‘s been really hard to be able to coach as well,” she said.

“But I’ve always wanted to do it, so I’m really happy that this year I finally got the chance.”

The Sydney University side will be one of the tournament heavyweights in Perth, determined to knock reigning champions Mermaids Brisbane off their perch.

Gofers said bringing a team to a national club competition so early in her coaching career has been a challenge, both for herself and for the team.

“It’s a process for me as well as the girls.” Gofers explained, and she and the girls work through their mistakes together.

Sydney University Cubs have been a top club at the Australian Water Polo Youth Championships since the tournament’s inception in 2019. Picture: John Gass

“So I hope that by January, or however long I stay with this team, we can kind of work on all those little things as we go.

“Working with young, up and coming players brings its own challenges, with the girls all having different aspirations of where they want to go in their professional sporting career.

“There‘s girls who really see this as something that they want to pursue and get to that elite level and make the Aussie junior teams and then progressively and get to the best level that they can.

“And then there’s other girls who enjoy playing, enjoy the social aspects, enjoy making the friends. That’s another thing that is a challenge, is like kind of balancing those goals.”

The Lionesses have put in the extra efforts in the lead-up to the championships, with the coach doubling down on training sessions following the end of the school term.

Sydney University Cubs will be determined to go all the way in the U16 girls tournament in Perth in January. Picture: John Gass

Gofers said despite the additional training, it’s important for her as a coach not to bombard them with information and overload the team, and to allow them to still have fun.

“It‘s been a challenge for me” Gofers said.

“Just to know what’s too much, what’s too confusing, not too confusing, too complicated, but then also what’s too basic.”

Finding that sweet spot has been a challenge, but one Gofers has really enjoyed working towards.

The Australian Youth Water Polo Championships will run across two events with the Under-14s and Under-18s from January 9-13 and the Under-12 and Under-16 from January 15-19.