In an enthralling extratime contest between two of sport's most intense rivals, the Aussie Sharks have fallen agonisingly short in the men's gold medal match going down 11-10 to the USA at the Water Polo Pan Pans in Melbourne. The US were all class leading at half time and three-quarter time to stamp their authority on the match, before the Sharks showcased their bravery and never say die attitude to mount a fabulous come back and even the contest at full time. American captain Tony Azevedo was the star of the match scoring an incredible six goals, including one in the opening minutes of extra time. Richie Campbell edged Australia back to 10-10 before Peter Varellas scored the last goal of the match to give the Beijing silver medallists' the gold. Azevedo was very pleased with the victory and said the result was a just reward for all the effort the American boys put in.

"This team's been together for a while and any chance we get to play and win a final is really important to us," Azevedo said. "I have been dealing with a back injury and missed two months of games, so this is the first time I've been back for a big tournament. I just go into survival mode to get through the games. "We had some really close matches this week and that's where you find out who you can count on which is great for the younger guys to experience.

"All in all it's been a great week and where hoping taking this performance into the rest of the year." The two teams went neck and neck in the first period with Azevedo striking twice, before Aussie skipper Sam McGregor and Aaron Younger both netted to level the scores at the first break. The Sharks didn't scoring again until late in the second period, with Tim Cleland scoring from two metres out to take Australia to 3-4 down at half time. The game's intensity increased markedly in the third term as both teams netted three goals, including a double to Azevedo and a great centre forward strike by Jamie Beadsworth.

Three time Olympic veteran Thomas Whalan then showed his credentials ahead of London with two final period goals including one with two and a half minutes left to level the scores. As the clock ran down confusion reigned when McGregor received his third major foul and the Sharks suffered another ejection putting them two down. The USA looked like they might score but an amazing steal from Aaron Younger put the game into extra-time.

For Whalan, although the loss was disappointing, the 31-year-old was upbeat about the team's progression and said he was enjoying being back in the national setup and was looking forward to striving for his fourth Olympics. "To get back into it with two important goals gave me a lot of confidence coming back into the team, but I am just so excited to be part of such a strong team unit now," Whalan said. "I know myself, that I have a lot to improve on and I'm looking forward to improving even more. "USA is a great team and even though we're not happy with the outcome in terms of losing, at this stage of the game as we look towards London we are working on processes and putting combinations together and I think we did that pretty well. We've obviously got a lot to do but we've got six month to do it. "Absolutely this is the best Australian team I've played with. That's why I'm trying to get to my fourth Olympics because I believe in this team, I think it's the best team we've had and I think it's my best chance to get onto that Olympic podium."

Australian Coach John Fox said although the team was disappointed not to win, they would address what they needed to do to improve on the second place performance. "We need more quality games like that and we need more tense situations like that and hopefully the more we do get them it will put us in good shape for the Olympics," Fox said. "We need to clean up our extraman defence because the Americans beat us there but in terms of our set field play it was a very physical game and I felt we were able to match them." Fox said he was pleased with the effort from his younger players, especially Beijing Olympian Richie Campbell who stood up when needed. "He got clutch goals in critical situations and he really performed well when it mattered most," Fox said. Both teams will see their performances during the Water Polo Pan Pacs as great lead ups for London 2012 and will expect to fight it out against each once again in July.

Results: USA 11 bt Australia 10 XT (9-9 FT)

Quarters: (2-2, 2-1, 3-3, 2-3) Extra time: (1-1, 1-0)

AUS Scorers: Richie Campbell 2, Thomas Whalan 2, Aaron Younger 2, Sam McGregor, Tim Cleland, Rhys Howden, Jamie Beadsworth

USA Scorers: Tony Azevedo 6, Layne Beaubien 3, Ryan Bailey, Adam Wright,

Australia: Joel Dennerly, Richie Campbell, Tim Cleland, Sam Avallone, Jamie Beadsworth, Anthony Martin, Aaron Younger, Sam McGregor, Thomas Whalan, Gavin Woods, Rhys Howden, Billy Miller, James Clark

USA: Merrill Moses, Peter Varellas, Peter Hudnut, Jeff Powers, Adam Wright, Brian Alexander, Layne Beaubien, Tony Azevedo, Ryan Bailey, Tim Hutten, Jesse Smith, JW Krumpholz, Jansen Wigo