Lake Cathie suffer narrow loss to Urunga in State Cup final

LAKE Cathie Football Club’s Women’s Northern League A Grade suffered a narrow defeat to Urunga FC in the final of the Community Plate at the Women’s State Cup on Sunday, 13 July.

Hosted at the Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility, Urunga secured a 1-0 victory in a hard-fought encounter which could have gone either way.

The competition attracted the top Women’s Premier League and community football teams from across Northern NSW Football’s catchment area.

Lake Cathie FC showcased consistency throughout the group stage, earning a dominant 4-0 victory against Broadmeadow Magic.

Advancing to the semi finals, Lake Cathie defeated Newcastle University FC 2-0, with the win paving their way to their clash against Urunga.

The final was a closely contested affair, resulting in a 0-0 deadlock at halftime

WIth half an hour gone in the second half the stalemate was eventually broken, after Juniper Doye of Urunga FC scored a crucial goal to provide her side a 1-0 lead.

Undeterred by this setback, Lake Cathie continued to push for an equaliser.

Urunga’s strong defence thwarted all attempts however, the score remaining 1-0 as the final whistle blew.

Peter Briggs, president of Lake Cathie FC, spoke with pride of the side’s performance.

“As a club we are extremely proud of the way the women’s team played across the weekend,” said Briggs.

“The State Cup is always a great experience for our players to test themselves against other strong regional and Newcastle sides.

“The State Cup Community Plate final was a close game,” Briggs said.

“Our women’s team has quickly developed a close rivalry with Urunga and really enjoys the opportunity to play against them.”

The sides have become used to each other in recent weeks, with Lake Cathie defeating Urunga on penalties in a Regional Super League match last weekend.

By Kim AMBROSE