May 17, 2023 - An incredible feat and a water polo first - Jadran Split has beat Jug to become the Croatian Water Polo Champion for the first time in the club's history! 

The decisive fifth match of the Croatian water polo championship finals was held between Jadran and Jug on Wednesday at the Poljud swimming pool in Split. 

All tickets for the final were sold out last week after the fourth final match. All 650 tickets in the stands were sold, and Jadran decided to install prefabricated stands to seat more. One was placed under the scoreboard, on the other side of the main stand, for 175 seats, and two smaller stands behind the goals, with about 100 seats on each side. In total, a maximum of 1,025 people were in attendance tonight. 

Before tonight the finals series was tied at 2-2, with both teams celebrating in their pools so far.

Split Jadran won the fifth, decisive game of the final series 11:8 (4:1, 0:2, 4:2, 3:3) and, in their sixth final, finally secured their first Croatian title!

Jadran has never been the champion of Croatia until now. Today, they created history. This triumph ended the 18-year fast of Split men's clubs in team sports (soccer, basketball, handball, water polo, volleyball). The last Croatian champion was Hajduk back in 2005.  

Jadran opened the match brilliantly and took a 4:0 lead. Jug responded and returned to the game, but in the third quarter, Jadran gained a three-goal advantage again. Finally, four minutes before the end of the game, Jadran secured all doubts of who would be the winner, leading 10:6. The final score was 11:8. 

The final's best player was Rino Burić, who scored four goals for Jadran. Marinić Kragić and Butić scored two each.

On the other side, Joković scored two goals for Jug, while Fatović, Vukojević, Biljaka, Kakaris, Lazić, and Žuvela scored one each.

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May 25, 2022 - Jug Dubrovnik celebrated against Jadran Split in Game 4 on Tuesday night to become the 2021/22 Croatian water polo champion. 

Dubrovnik water polo club Jug AO thus won their 17th Croatian title on Tuesday night and 39th national champion title in total. It is also the 66th overall trophy for the club.

In the fourth game of this year's Croatian championship final playoff, Jug defeated Jadran Split on penalties at their pool in Gruž, thus ending the series with 3:1 for Jug.

The result was 6:6 after 32 minutes of play, forcing the match into penalties. All four Jug players were accurate with their shots, while Marin Delić and Jerko Marinić Kragić did not score for Jadran.

It was a meeting with few goals, dominated by goalkeepers on both sides, and Jug held a 5:4 advantage from the end of the third quarter until a minute and a half before the end of the match. Then, Konstantin Kharkov scored for 5:5, which was Jadran's first goal after almost 14 minutes of play. Rino Burić then gave Jadran a 6:5 advantage 35 seconds before the final buzzer, i.e., one step closer to the decisive fifth game.

However, Jug started the last attack with seven attackers, which paid off because Hrvoje Benić equalized for 6:6 nine seconds before the end. The game was then decided on penalties, as was the first game, and Jug was more successful in the shootout once again. 

Just before the Croatian champion medals and trophies were distributed, individual awards and trophies for the 2021/22 season were presented in Dubrovnik:

Jerko Marinić Kragić (Jadran)  was named the top scorer in the Croatian Championship (63 goals)

Toni Popadić (Jug) was named the best goalkeeper in the Croatian Championship

Konstantinos Kakaris (Jug) was named the best player in the Croatian Championship.

Congrats to both Jug and Jadran on a season well done!

Source: HVS

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April 3, 2022 - Jadran Split beat Jug Dubrovnik 18:16 on Saturday night for their first Regional League Final on Sunday against Serbian club Novi Belgrade. 

For the first time in history, Jadran Split will play in the Regional League final. Jadran succeeded in an exciting and uncertain semifinal match, beating Dubrovnik's Jug AO 18:16. 

The match saw a total of 35 exclusions, with a lot of aggression and contact. Both coaches received yellow cards, so there was work for the referees and on the benches. Both teams also changed their goalkeepers. There were 34 goals, or a goal every 55 seconds in 32 minutes of play. It was the match of Jerko Marinić Kragić, who scored seven goals for Jadran. 

Unlike all previous matches between these two clubs, Jug started much better, leading the first two quarters by two goals. However, Jadran was always close. Jug was up 3:1, 5:3, 6:4, and 7:5; they had the opportunity to go to plus three in the second quarter. Jadran finally took the lead for the first time at 10:9 through captain Šetka 4 seconds before halftime.

Mile Smodlaka was the first to change the goalkeeper, sending in Mate Anić instead of Ivan Marcelić. After the second quarter, when Jadran led 10:9, Vjeko Kobešćak, dissatisfied with the performance of his first goalkeeper Toni Popadić, sent 18-year-old Ivan Jurišić to defend in the second half. The goalkeeper took the flattering title of the best at the Croatian Junior Championship the other day.

Popadić ultimately returned to goal a minute and a half before the end of the game, which proved much too late. Jadran coach Mile Smodlaka also brought back Marcelić in the third quarter.

"This was not a nice match. I am sorry that we did not use that good start," said Maro Joković, the most experienced Jug player. 

Jug awaits Radnički on Sunday, April 3, at 5 pm in the match for third place, while Jadran will start the battle for a new trophy this season after winning the Croatian Cup against Novi Belgrade at 8:30 pm. 

Before Jadran and Jug AO, the first semifinal included the two best Serbian teams, Novi Belgrade, and last season's winner, Radnički from Kragujevac. Novi Belgrade celebrated 12:8 (2:0, 2:3, 4:4, 4:1). 

"Novi Belgrade is a top team. The favorite. But we will fight," said Jug's hero Jerko Marinić Kragić. 

The Regional League will get a new winner, either Jadran or the host Novi Belgrade. 

Source: Sportske Novosit

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March 28, 2021 - Jug Dubrovnik and Radnički Kragujevac will fight for the regional water polo league championship title on Sunday in Zagreb. 

In the final tournament semifinals on Saturday, the Dubrovnik team defeated Jadran Split 12-10 (3-3, 5-2, 3-2, 1-3), and Kragujevac beat Mladost Zagreb 14-13 (0-2, 1-1, 5-2, 2-3, 6-5) in a shootout. Mladost was aiming for the third overall and third consecutive title.

Jug came to victory in the second semifinal thanks to a better game in the second and third quarters. When coach Vjekoslav Kobešćak's side took the lead with 11-6 in the 22nd minute, the winner was practically decided. By the end of the match, Split reduced the gap to two goals, but for the second time in a week, they did not manage to beat the favored Jug, as was the case on the recent visit to Gruž in the Croatian championship match.

The most deserving of the Jug victory was Loren Fatović who scored six of the 12 goals for the Dubrovnik side. Xavi Garcia and Hrvoje Benić nailed the net twice. Jerko Marinić Kragić was the best for Jadran with four goals and Marin Delić with three goals.

Jug thus advanced to its 12th Regional Water Polo League final, where it will hunt for its fifth title and the first after 2018. Radnički is the first Serbian club to fight for the title of champion in this competition. This will be the eleventh final for Jug. 2012 remains the only year when the Dubrovnik team did not play in the final.

The finalists were rivals in the qualifying group, and bac in mid-January, Jug convincingly won. 

Sunday's program at the Sava pool in Zagreb will begin at 5:15 pm with the match for third place between Mladost Zagreb and Jadran Split. The final between Jug and Radnički is scheduled for 7 pm.

Source: Glas Istre

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March 5, 2021 - Jug Dubrovnik is 2nd in Group A as the second preliminary 'bubble' tournament of this season's LEN Champions League comes to an end in Ostia, Italy. 

Water polo club Jug AO from Dubrovnik completed the second preliminary tournament in Ostia with two wins and two losses this week, finishing in 2nd place with 15 points behind Pro Recco with 21. 

Jug's first match on March 1 was against CC Ortigia, in which they opened the tournament with an 8:6 win. 

Jug, unfortunately, suffered its heaviest defeat in European history in round 2 on March 2, with Pro Recco outclassing the Croatian side 18:3.

It was a duel of two undefeated teams in Group A, and a derby was expected, but Dubrovnik didn't stand a chance. Jug scored only one goal in the first three quarters (and from a penalty), while the remaining two goals were scored in the last quarter when Pro Recco gave the bench players a chance.

Loren Fatović scored two goals for Jug, and Marin Tomasović scored one.

Fortunately, the heavy defeat did not have serious consequences for Jug, who beat Spandau 04 12:10 on March 3. 

Jug's game dropped after a 2:0 lead, and Spandau led 5:3 in the middle of the second quarter. Jug regained their advantage for 9:6 just before the end of the third quarter.

By the end of the match, Jug managed to keep their led and record their fifth victory in the Champions League this season.

Loren Fatović and Alexandros Papanastiou scored four goals each to be the best for Jug. 

Jug recorded their second defeat in Group A on Thursday, with Marseille winning 15:13. Marseille gained an advantage already in the first quarter, which they won 5:3, and Jug was only a goal behind in the third quarter, which they won 3:2. Marseille won the final quarter 4:3 and ultimately the victory. 

Loren Fatović was the best for Jug with three goals, while Javier Garcia, Marko Žuvela, and Paulo Obradović scored two goals each. 

After seven games, Jug is second in the standings with 15 points, behind the first-placed Pro Recco. Marseille is fourth with seven points.

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January 18, 2021 - Three Croatian water polo teams - Jadran, Mladost, and Jug - have advanced to the Regional League Final Four!

The qualifying tournaments of the Premier Regional League ended in Belgrade and Dubrovnik, bringing us the semifinal pairs of the final tournament that will take place in Zagreb on March 26 and 27. In the semifinals, Mladost - Radnički and Jug Adriatic Osiguranje - Jadran will meet based on their placement in the tournament.

Šetka and Zović lead Jadran to victory

Jadran, primarily on the wings of five-time scorers, captain Anđelo Šetka and the left-handed returnee from Berlin, Ivan Domagoj Zović, defeated Primorje EB and thus won second place in Group A. This also means a spot in the Final Four. Jadran was better for most of the game, and if we omit the initial lead of Rijeka (1:0 and 2:1), Split led most of the match. In fact, on several occasions and quite convincingly (6:3, 7:4, and 9:6), and yet the finale was dramatic. Less than three minutes before the end of the match, Rijeka managed to equalize (10:10), and that dangerously threatened the ambitions of Jadran to qualify for the final tournament in Zagreb. Jadran ultimately sought victory over Primorje EB, in four quarters and without penalties, because any other outcome would seriously compromise Jadran's chances.  

Zović then managed to score two goals in less than a minute to go. Then, with an extra man, and 40 seconds left, captain Šetka undoubtedly resolved all doubts with a goal for 13:10 and secured his team's victory. 

Mladost convincing against Crvena Zvezda

Mladost routinely defeated the team that won the Serbian Cup some 20 days ago. Crvena Zvezda did not manage to take the lead at any moment, and the maximum they managed was three draws at the beginning of the match and the last at the beginning of the second quarter (5:5). A little later, Mladost was up by a 2-3 goal difference, and the advantage only increased as the game progressed. Cosmin Radu stood out for the winning team with four goals. Goalkeeper Ivan Marcelić was also solid with 12 saves.

Jug without a problem against Solaris

In the Dubrovnik Group B, Jug Adriatic Osiguranje, similar to Mladost in Belgrade, had no issues. In the last game, they defeated Solaris by nine goals. It was the third victory with such an advantage, while Radnički from Kragujevac was left with -11, and Budva with as many as 17 goals behind. The best scorers against Šibenik were Loren Fatović and Alexandros Papanastasiou, with three goals each. 

Radnički reached the semifinals

In Group B's last game, Radnički defeated Kotor's Primorac, a team led by Sandro Sukno, and thus confirmed second place and a spot in the semifinals for the 2020/21 season. The winner was ultimately decided in the third quarter. Namely, at halftime, Primorac still had a minimal advantage (8:7), and in the third quarter, the Kragujevac side scored five goals and received only 1. Primorac could no longer threaten that advantage in the last quarter. After a long time, a team from Serbia will play in the final tournament of the Regional League.

Source: HVS

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July 19, 2020 - In the first game of the Croatian Championship finals, which took place in Dubrovnik, Dubrovnik water polo club Jug defeated Zagreb's Mladost with a better performance in the penalty shootout for a score of 18-16 (5-2, 4-4, 3-4, 1-3 - 5-3) to lead the series 1:0.

HRT reports that Mladost did not have the strength to beat Jug twice in Dubrovnik in just four days after they celebrated to win the Adriatic Regional League title on Wednesday. The Dubrovnik team started the match much better and were up by three points at half time. Mladost was also left without their best player, Milos Cuk, due to a penalty. However, the Zagreb club proved to be more physically prepared again, gained an advantage, and scored five points before the end of the match with a goal by American player Alex Bowen.

In the penalty shootout, all five players of Jug hit the net, while Jug goalkeeper Popadic defended Luka Bukic's shot.

Hrvoje Benic scored five goals for Jug, while Luka Bukic, Konstantin Harkov and Alex Bowen scored three goals each for Mladost.

The finals feature the only two clubs with a double-digit number of Croatian championships won - Jug has 15 titles, and Mladost 10.

The second match will be played in Zagreb, on July 22, starting at 6:45 PM, and the third match will be in Dubrovnik on July 25 (8:15 PM). Possible fourth and fifth matches will be played in Zagreb on July 29 and Dubrovnik on August 2.

Jadran Split and Solaris Sibenik met for the first game in the series for 3rd place on Saturday night at the outdoor Zvoncac pool in Split. The Split club defeated Solaris 13:9. The two clubs will meet for the second match on Monday, July 20, 2020, in Sibenik. 

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July 15, 2020 - Zagreb water polo club Mladost and Dubrovnik's Jug AO have advanced to the final of the Adriatic Regional League, which is being held at the Gruz swimming pool in Dubrovnik.

HRT reports that Jug AO was better than Jadran Split with a convincing score of 19-11 (5-2, 4-2, 6-3, 4-4). Dubrovnik was led by Hrvoje Benic, who scored five goals, and Loren Fatovic and Marin Tomasovic, who scored three goals each, while Antonio Duzevic and Zvonimir Butic were the best for Jadran, scoring three goals each.

As hosts, the Dubrovnik club confirmed their status as favorites and had no problems reaching the victory. Jug furiously started the meeting and gave the Split club little hope from the beginning. 

Until the middle of the first quarter, Jadran stayed afloat, losing 3-2 with two attacks to equalize, but Toni Popadic stopped the attempts of Marin Delic and Andelo Setka.

With the goals of Lozina, Benic and Obradovic, Jug went to 6-2, and even then, it was clear that Jadran would struggle to return to the game.

The host continued to increase their advantage and had the highest in the last quarter when a goal by Marin Tomasovic made it 18-8. By the end, Jadran managed to reduce the gap to the final 19-11.

The title defenders Mladost Zagreb met in the first semi-final match, defeating Jadran Carine from Herceg Novi with a score of 14-12 (1-3, 3-3, 6-4, 4-2). The Zagreb team came to victory in the second half after the Montenegrins won the first half 6-4.

The absolute hero of the duel was Luka Bukic, who scored an impressive seven goals for Mladost, while Milos Cuk added two, and Cosmin Radu, Konstantin Harkov, Josip Vrlic and Lovre Milos added one each. Vladan Spajic was the best for the Herceg Novi club with four goals.

Jug will thus fight for their fifth title, while Mladost will try to defend the title they won in the 2018/2019 season. 

The final is scheduled for Wednesday at 8 pm in Dubrovnik.

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February 6, 2020 - The eighth round of the LEN Champions League was held on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, featuring Croatian clubs Jug, Jadran, and Mladost.

The Jug Adriatic water polo team has made a big step towards the final eight after defeating Olympiacos 13:9 in the eighth round of Group A of the Champions League group stage, beating the Greek champions for the first time.

The Dubrovnik squad booked a decisive victory against the 2019 European finalist, and the key was the second quarter, which Jug won 5:1.

Olympiakos led 3:1, but Jug woke up and scored six goals in a row to lead 7:3. At half time, Vjekoslav Kobešćak's team had a five-goal advantage (9:4) and, in the continuation of the match, managed to maintain their edge.

Paulo Obradovic, Loren Fatovic and Luka Loncar each contributed to the win with three goals, while Toni Popadic was excellent in goal. The most efficient for Olympiacos was Maro Jokovic and Stefan Mitrovic with two goals each.

In the second match of this group, Jadran lost to Barceloneta 12:16 away and recorded their sixth defeat. The Split team held up well in the first three quarters and were losing 10:11 in the final eight minutes. However, Barceloneta was better 5:2 in the last quarter.

Alvaro Granados was the most efficient for Barceloneta with five goals and Alexandre Bodegas scored four goals, while Rino Buric, Ivan Domagoj Zovic, and Nathan Power were the best for Jadran with two goals each.

Barceloneta and Olympiacos are tied for the top spot in Group A with 19 points, while Jug is in second place with 18 points.

The third Croatian representative in the Champions League, Mladost Zagreb, defeated Marseille 14:11 as a guest in the 8th round of Group B of the Champions League.

Mladost is fourth in the rankings with 16 points, the same number of points as OSC in third, while Marseille is in sixth with nine points. At the top is Pro Recco with 20 points and Ferencvaros with 17 points.

You can see the full LEN Champions League table here.

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November 24, 2019 - The Mladost Zagreb men's and women's water polo teams won the Croatian Cup in Split on Sunday. 

The first trophy of this water polo season goes to Zagreb! After a long eight years, the Croatian Cup Cup will shine again for the men's team at Mladost, which is their ninth total. At the Poljud pool in Split on Sunday, Mladost stopped the four-year-reign of Jug. 

HRT reports that the Mladost Zagreb men's team won the Croatian Cup on Sunday night after defeating Jug Dubrovnik 16-12 (3-3, 3-3, 7-4, 3-2) in the final in Split.

In a match with an unusually high number of goals, Mladost reached the Cup victory, mostly thanks to a great third quarter where they were up 7-4. Jug thus remains at 14 Cup trophies and have won the four previous seasons in a row.

Luka Bukić (4 goals), Cosmin Radu (3 goals), and Josip Vrlić and Franko Lazić, who scored two goals each, were the most effective for Mladost. Paulo Obradović scored five goals to be the best for Jug, while Loren Fatović scored three goals. 

The Mladost women's water polo team was also successful on Sunday and raised the Cup after a convincing victory over Split's Jadran. Namely, Mladost won the Croatian Cup after defeating Jadran in the final 20-5 to win their eighth Cup ever, and the third consecutive.

The Zagreb side was dominant in the victory, even though they were without their best possible lineup, as Petra Bukić, who was selected as the best Croatian water polo player in 2017 and 2018, was out due to injury.

However, the 2019 best player Emma Miljkovic was brilliant with six goals in the final. In the last minute of the second quarter, it was 11-0 for Mladost. Jadran's first goal came from a five-meter penalty. 

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