Watch: Malta waterpolo eye winning start in bid to reach sixth successive Euro finals

The Malta waterpolo senior national teams will start their bid for a sixth successive European Championship final appearance when they face Ukraine in their opening match at the National Pool (start: 7.30pm).

Malta were drawn to face Ukraine, Portugal and France in their qualifying group, with the top two teams booking their place in next year’s continental finals in Belgrade.

Milan Cirovic’s boys have no margin of error if they are to seal their place in the continental finals, as they will be looking to see off Ukraine on Monday and Portugal on Tuesday to ensure they arrive for Wednesday’s final match against France already home and dry.

“We need to be ready to deliver,” Cirovic said with a smile.

“Our preparation started six months ago with the World Cup Division Two qualifiers and the return of Stevie Camilleri boosted us. Then we competed in the finals in Istanbul, and that turned out to be a great event for our preparations.

“Unfortunately, some of the players who ply their trade abroad couldn’t join us for these competitions, but now they are available. In May, we hosted a very important six-day camp here, which culminated in a friendly match against Turkey, and that was a major boost for us.

“In this friendly, Stevie Camilleri showed what a great leader he is, and the return of Matthew Zammit was a major plus as his influence in the game against Turkey was incredible.

“Two years ago we had a young team in the European finals, but now these players have matured and I am looking forward to seeing what they can achieve more. There may be new rules in the game, but we can’t make any excuses.

“Malta qualified for the last five championship finals, and we need to get our sixth ticket.”