There have been updates to the 2025 Northern NSW Men’s and Women’s State Cup Finals.
Women’s State Cup Final
The decision has been made to declare Maitland FC and Charlestown Azzurri as joint winners of the 2025 Women’s State Cup.
The Women’s State Cup Final between Maitland and Charlestown was abandoned when Azzurri captain Jayna Frazer suffered a serious knee injury in the closing stages.
The match, which was played at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility on 13 July, was 0-0 at the time of the abandonment.
NNSWF General Manager Football Operations Liam Bentley said clubs were consulted before a decision was made.
“It was an unfortunate end to an otherwise successful tournament and our thoughts are with Jayna as she faces a long road to recovery after the injury,” Bentley said.
“This has been a difficult season for all clubs in terms of scheduling given the wet weather impacts at the majority of our grounds.
“As the game was abandoned near the end of the match, we didn’t think bringing both teams back solely for a penalty shootout would be a fair reflection of the tournament as a whole.
“I’d like to thank both clubs for their collaboration and input before we made the decision.”
Men’s State Cup Final
The decision has been made to combine the Men’s State Cup Final and NPL Men’s NNSW round 14 league fixture between Cooks Hill United and Weston Bears, with the matches to be played as a single fixture.
The match will be played on the grass pitch at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility on Saturday 26 July.
If the match is drawn after 90 minutes, each club will receive one NPL Men’s NNSW competition point, with a penalty shootout to decide the Men’s State Cup winner.
If a team wins in regulation time, that club will receive three league points and be awarded the cup.
Bentley acknowledged the outcome was not ideal but, with no other realistic alternatives, a decision had been made with player welfare in mind.
“With the significant weather events of this year, we are at a point where Weston Bears and Cooks Hill United are now playing every midweek and weekend until the final round of the season, with the realistic possibility that both teams can also be involved in NPL Men’s NNSW finals or Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Finals Series,” Bentley said.
“Combining games has only been considered as a final contingency because there are now no other viable options that don’t have a wider impact on other clubs involved in NPL finals or Promotion/Relegation Play-Offs.
“By playing the match at LMRFF we can move it to a synthetic pitch if the grass pitch becomes unplayable due to wet weather. This will ensure the match goes ahead. Given this fixture covers two matches in separate competitions, any postponement would cause significant scheduling issues.
“We hope both clubs can appreciate that while this is a compromise, it seeks to balance player welfare with the wider implications any alternative would have on their clubs and the competition overall.”
2025 Northern NSW Men’s State Cup Final and Community Plate schedule:
Saturday 26 July
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility
Men’s State Community Plate
Northern Storm v Croudace Bay
LMRFF – Pitch 3 (grass)
Kick-off 12pm
NPL Round 14 Reserve Grade
Cooks Hill United v Weston Bears
LMRFF – Pitch 2 (synthetic)
Kick-off 12.30pm
Men’s State Cup Final / NPL Round 14 1st Grade
Cooks Hill United v Weston Bears
LMRFF – Pitch 3 (grass)
Kick-off 3pm
