SUNRAYSIA has untapped potential in junior soccer ranks and they proved it at the weekend.
The region’s Under 14 Girls and Boys both claimed victories in the Boys and Girls FC junior soccer tournament in Bendigo, the premier Victoria country junior pre-season event played under modified rules.
Football Federation Sunraysia also had Under 15 Boys and Under 16/17 Boys finish runner-up in their respective divisions, Under 13 Boys and Under 16 Girls come third, and Under 12 Boys recorded a win and two losses in their three matches.
After three wins and a draw on Saturday, Sunraysia sat top of the table in the Under 14 Girls, going on to defeat Bendigo Amateur Soccer League Blue 2-0 in the semi-final.
In the cup play-off, the Sunraysia girls defeated BASL Yellow 1-0, with Heidi Gibson drawing a foul inside the penalty box to earn a spot kick which was put into the back of the net by Ava Gemits.
Coach Robbie Pullman, who is a first year representative coach, said he couldn’t fault how well his side played across the weekend.
“The girls were awesome, they had some great team performances over the two days,” he said.
“Most of this team have played together for the last few years with only two or three new faces, so they have really good chemistry.
“As coach, it was challenging with the different rules but it was a great experience.”
Under 14 Boys were able to go on and win the plate in their division with a 4-2 victory over Blackburn Panthers.
It proved the group has a strong mindset as they atoned for a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Blackburn the previous day.
The Under 16/17 Boys got the better of Springside West Secondary College in their semi-final 4-0 but lost an absolute shootout of a final to La Trobe University Under 17s 7-6.
Their Under 15 counterparts followed an impressive day one with a 1-0 semi-final victory over Williams Landing, however, they went down 4-1 to George Cross in the final.
The Football Federation Sunraysia season begins with the pre-season cup on Sunday, April 16, before the home and away season begins on April 30.
