THEA Simpson has capped a memorable water polo season with a call-up for Great Britain Under-19s.

The 16-year-old Halliwell girl will train with the national squad in a bid to represent her country at next year's European and World Championships.

She has already earned international recognition this year when she was selected for England to take part in a tournament in Malta in October as part of the English Schools Swimming Association (ESSA) team.

Thea is the latest in a long line of Bolton School students to play water polo at international level.

The school is one of the most successful and highly respected in the country with an outstanding record of winning the national schools' championships at all three age groups over the last few years.

There has been a production line of top-class players come out of the school and Thea has been helped in her development by her coach, Andy McGinty, who is also the Bolton School Boys’ Division water polo coach and Women’s Coach at the City of Manchester Water Polo Club.

Year 12 student Thea attended a two-week international water polo academy in Barcelona where she sufficiently impressed to be selected to play in the Turbo Cup in September, an annual international tournament in Barcelona.

Her successful season continued with selection for the ESSA team and then came her call-up for the GB U19s following successful trials.

She will now be looking to impress selectors to maintain her position in the squad over the next few months in a bid to secure selection for the squad that travels to the European and World Championships.

She has also been selected by Swim England Water Polo to undertake the prestigious Sporting Excellence Award – a government-funded sports performance programme created by Skills Active in conjunction with the National Governing Bodies (NGBs) of Professional and Olympic Sports.

It provides a structured training and development route for talented young athletes who are regarded as having a good chance of excelling in their sport, either by competing on the world stage or securing a professional contract.