The 2026 NAIDOC Cup continued in perfect conditions on Wednesday as Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility hosted a thrilling day two on Awabakal land.
The First Nations tournament saw four games take place on day two with Northern NSW Football defeating Football NSW 6-1 in the under-14s girls opening match.
NNSWF opened the scoring in the 20th minute when Lilly Boss charged down the field before crossing the ball into the box for Indi Bale, who calmly sent it into the top corner.
Football NSW equalised in the 24th minute as Willow Andrews beat her defenders before reaching the top of the penalty area where she sent the ball past a diving goalkeeper and into the bottom-left corner.
The sides looked set to head into half-time locked at 1-1, but a powerful shot from Isabella Langridge from the top of the penalty area in the 32nd minute saw NNSWF take a 2-1 lead into the break.
NNSWF doubled their lead in the 40th minute when Lucia Randall launched the ball from outside the box and over the goalkeeper before Bale quickly added a fourth in the 43rd minute.
Bale found the back of the net twice more in the 51st and 56th minutes to seal a 6-1 win for the NNSWF under-14s girls.
A dominant performance by NNSWF's under-14s boys saw them secure a 5-0 victory over FNSW in the second game of the day.
NNSWF opened the scoring inside the opening minute as Max Ferguson beat his defenders and charged to the top of the penalty area before slotting the ball into the bottom-right corner.
Ned Giles doubled the lead in the 20th minute after weaving his way through FNSW defenders before launching the ball from the top of the penalty area and over the goalkeeper into the back of the net to give NNSWF a 2-0 lead at half-time.
NNSWF extended their lead to 4-0 after goals in the 43rd and 44th minutes saw Ferguson and Saxon Lyons find the back of the net respectively.
Lyons took the score to 5-0 in the 56th minute when he charged down the field and sent the ball towards goal before it hit the side of the post and bounced back into the net to seal victory in their opening match.
A thrilling encounter in the under-16s girls saw NNSWF walk away with a hard-fought 2-0 victory.
The first half saw an end-to-end battle as NNSWF looked to continue their undefeated run on the day while FNSW searched for their first point.
The sides could not be separated as they went into half-time locked at 0-0, but the second half saw FNSW come out strongly.
NNSWF withstood the pressure as they continued to battle, with the moment they had been waiting for arriving in the 57th minute.
After the initial shot was denied by goalkeeper Elizabeth Steptoe, Tahlia Radford pounced on the deflection at the back post and slotted the ball into the bottom-right corner to give NNSWF a 1-0 lead.
NNSWF did not back down as the game approached its conclusion and put the result beyond doubt moments before full-time when an unmarked Ella Sproates received the ball inside the box and calmly sent it into the back of the net to secure a 2-0 win.
The under-16s boys took the field to wrap up day two, with NNSWF continuing their dominance with a 6-0 win.
The sides could not be separated throughout the first half despite their best attempts and looked set to head into the break locked at 0-0.
But a goal moments before half-time from Lachlan Blayden, after he found the end of a Levi Van Haren ball, saw NNSWF take a 1-0 lead.
NNSWF added a second to the tally in the 44th minute when Vinnie Hall's shot was denied by the FNSW goalkeeper, but Trey Anderson pounced on the loose ball and buried it home.
Van Haren rose highest to head home a corner in the 55th minute to take the score to 3-0 before Anderson and Rockie Gruber added two more.
NNSWF put the result beyond doubt when Kaiden Toohey charged down the park and sent the ball to Cameron Peel in front of goal, who calmly found the back of the net in the 64th minute to lock in a 6-0 result.
The win saw NNSWF secure a clean sweep on day two of the 2026 NAIDOC Cup and enter day three with four wins and 19 goals scored to one conceded.
NNSWF Participation Officer – Schools and First Nations Football Micheal Hugo praised the performances across the four teams, highlighting the continued progress of Indigenous footballers across northern NSW.
"It was a fantastic day of performances. It started with the under-14 girls who produced a great win and that momentum continued through to the under-14s boys," Hugo said.
"The under-16 girls battled hard for another impressive win, before the under-16 boys responded after a tough first half with an outstanding performance in the second half.
"From a Northern NSW Football perspective, while it was a dominant day for us as a Member Federation, it also demonstrates that the work we're doing across our region is starting to show through, particularly in the development and performance of our Indigenous footballers."
Day three matches kick off at 9am and see each team play each other once more.
The official medal ceremony and cup presentation will be held at 3.15pm which will also feature the announcement of the players of the tournament.
2026 NAIDOC Cup Day Two Results
Under-14s Girls
Northern NSW 6 (Indi Bale 4, Isabella Langridge, Lucia Randall)
Football NSW 1 (Willow Andrews)
Under-14s Boys
Northern NSW 5 (Maxwell Ferguson 2, Ned Giles, Saxon Lyons 2)
Football NSW 0
Under-16s Girls
Northern NSW 2 (Tahlia Radford, Ella Sproates)
Football NSW 0
Under-16s Boys
Northern NSW 6 (Lachlan Blayden, Trey Anderson 2, Levi Van Haren, Rockie Gruber, Cameron Peel)
Football NSW 0