It was cold and rainy when the Emerging Matildas Championships kicked off in Melbourne on Friday, but the football on show quickly heated up.
Before the tournament began, the opening ceremony took place at The Home of the Matildas where the team captains and vice-captains were presented with their armbands.
Day one of the tournament saw NNSWF’s under-16s secure a victory, while the under-15s ended the day with a hard-fought defeat.
Under-16s
The under-16s kicked off their campaign with a convincing 3-0 win over Football Victoria White.
NNSWF came out of the gates firing as they looked to start their tournament with a victory and were relentless in their search for the opening goal.
Mackenzie Preston-Poole had a strong shot on target from a tight angle in the third minute but was denied by the goalkeeper.
They did not have to wait long to find the back of the net when Annika Driscoll opened the under-16s account in the 11th minute.
Driscoll launched the ball from the top of the box, past the goalkeeper and into the bottom-left corner.
NNSWF were unable to find another in the first half, but a determined Driscoll locked in a brace just four minutes into the second half.
Driscoll charged into the box as she used her pace to beat Football Victoria White defenders and sent the ball into the bottom-left corner once again.
Hanna Mounter put the match to bed in the 46th minute, charging onto a through pass and slotting the ball past the goalkeeper off her line and into the back of the net securing her side a 3-0 victory.
The under-16s will look to maintain momentum when they take on Football West at 12pm tomorrow.
Under-15s
NNSWF’s under-15s kicked off their campaign with a 2-0 defeat to Football NSW Regional, despite a number of positive signs.
The side dominated possession throughout the first half as they looked to open the scoring for the afternoon.
Arlie Lowe appeared to have done so in the fourth minute of the match, but it was ruled offside.
Despites NNSWF’s best efforts throughout the first half, they were unable to open the scoring and went into half-time trailing 2-0 after Football NSW Regional found the back of the net in the 21st and 23rd minutes.
As the rained came down in the second half NNSWF continued their search for their first goal of the tournament.
But strong goalkeeping by FNSW Regional kept the under-15s side at bay despite giving it their all.
While the side was unable to find the back of the net, they were able to prevent FNSW Regional from scoring a third and walked away with a 2-0 defeat.
The under-15s will aim to lock in their first win of the tournament tomorrow when they take on Football West at 12pm.
Northern NSW Football Technical Director Ryan Doidge was pleased with the efforts from the two sides in their opening matches.
"Overall for NNSWF it was a positive day in terms of performances, the under-16s were really effective in possession and came out firing and ultimately started the tournament where they left off last year," Doidge said.
"The under-15s will be disappointed with the result but some real positives to take away from today were players being brave in possession and playing through lines to create scoring opportunities.
"We're really excited for tomorrow" Doidge said.
More on the Emerging Matildas Championships
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