What do the two timekeepers each record?

One timekeeper records the exact periods of actual play, timeouts and the intervals between periods. The other records the periods of continuous possession of the ball by each team (the shot clock).

Timekeepers also time the exclusions of players, together with the re-entry times of excluded players or the substitutes replacing them.

Each match has four periods of eight minutes of actual play. The clock stops at every stoppage, such as a foul or VAR review, and stays stopped until the ball leaves the hand of the player taking the throw, or is touched by a player after a neutral throw. The World Aquatics intervals are two minutes between periods one and two and between three and four, and five minutes at half way. Water Polo Australia's overview describes the half-time break as three minutes, so the two sources differ on that one interval.

If a match has only two timekeepers and one secretary, the same split applies and the secretary keeps the record. If it has one timekeeper and one secretary, the timekeeper records possession and the secretary records actual play, timeouts, intervals and exclusion periods.

Sources: World Aquatics Competition Regulations (February 2026), Part Six, Articles 3.10, 3.14.4 and 4; Water Polo Australia, Water Polo in Australia overview.