Football Australia’s 2026 Mitre National Futsal Championships came to a close on Saturday after five hard-fought days of competition.
Each of Northern NSW Football’s nine teams gave it their all throughout the tournament, with enjoyment and development the key takeaways from the week.
Two NNSWF teams progressed to the semi-finals after they secured a win in the quarter-finals, while three teams took part in the Shield semi-finals.
The under-13s girls advanced to the semi-finals after they defeated Football Queensland Silver 2-1.
They returned to the court on Friday afternoon hopeful to secure a spot in the grand final on Saturday. The side faced a tough Football NSW Thunder and went down 4-0 to end their tournament.
NNSWF’s under-15s girls Red locked in a semi-final position when they downed Football Victoria White 3-0 in the quarter-final.
The side went head-to-head with Football NSW Thunder in the semi-final and despite their best efforts lost 5-1.
The under-13 boys suffered an 8–1 defeat in their quarter-final but progressed to the Shield semi-final, where they faced Football Queensland Silver and were beaten 10–0, bringing their campaign to an end.
NNSWF’s under-15s boys were defeated 5-0 in the quarter-final but still booked a spot in the Shield semi-final. They ultimately fell 3-2 to Capital Football, concluding their campaign.
The under-16s boys also secured a spot in the Shield semi-final, where they went head-to-head with Football Victoria. The boys repeated their round two performance against Football Victoria and were victorious 3-0.
They faced the Solomon Islands under-16s in the Shield grand final and fought hard to lock in a 3-0 win and end their tournament on a high.
NNSWF Futsal Manager Damon Shaw was pleased that all nine NNSWF sides were able to showcase their talent on the national stage.
“Overall I'm extremely happy with the commitment shown by all of our players and coaches. The nine teams represented themselves, the region and everyone involved in Northern NSW Football with pride,” Shaw said.
“There were a number of strong performances, both collectively and individually, from NNSWF. We have formed a really strong foundation for futsal in northern NSW and we will continue to develop over the coming years.
“NNSWF’s second year at Football Australia’s Mitre National Futsal Championships provided another valuable opportunity to measure ourselves against the best teams in the country and will help shape our planning for the future of futsal in northern NSW.”