Minor Semi Final
Umina v Kincumber
Umina looks to add to their unbeaten record over Kincumber in 2024, but the competition dark horses will have plenty to prove when they step on the pitch for their inaugural finals match as they prepare to de-wing the Eagles and keep their season alive.
The start of the year saw Umina say goodbye to Steve Donaldson, their previous coach who led them to multiple titles, and welcomed back Michael Penn who returned as head coach for this decorated WPL side.
Umina also experienced quite a change in personnel, with Penn stating at the start of the season that 2024 will serve as a transitioning year for the side which have brought in multiple youngsters who lack first-grade experience.
It was not a smooth sailing year by any means, but Umina made their attention clear from the opening week when they narrowly lost to competition favourites Terrigal 1-0.
Despite not coming away with the win, this set up the foundations for the season and a belief within the squad knowing they can go toe-to-toe with the best the competition has to offer.
Penn voiced what it means to him to make Finals and the obstacles this side has faced throughout the year. “For us to finish third in the league is without doubt a great achievement.”
“We have struggled throughout the season to put eleven players on the pitch each week and played the majority of the season without anyone on the bench. This is testimony to the tenacity and never-give-up attitude of this squad. This is their first season together and I couldn’t be prouder of their achievement.”
In their final two games of the season, Umina’s finals fate was in their hands as they needed just one victory to claim a spot in the top four.
Heading into their match of the round fixture away against Kanwal, Umina’s record on the road was far from great but the E-Gals showed up and claimed a deserved 2-0 victory which marked their first clean sheet on the road all year.
With Finals secured, Umina used last week to set the foundations for the upcoming Finals series and handed Killarney a 1-0 defeat to record back-to-back clean sheet victories for the first time this season as Umina seem to be hitting their season-best form at the right time of the year.
Penn spoke on his side’s recent success and how important it is to keep this backline in sync heading into the weekend. “We’ve steadily worked on our defensive liabilities and if this can be maintained it should put us in good stead for the finals.”
Despite having not lost to Kincumber this year, Penn is aware of how close those contests were and is expecting another intense battle with the Roos this weekend. “All our games against Kincumber have gone down to the wire and we are fully aware of their capabilities.”
“I expect the same tight game this weekend and we would be foolish to read anything into their last result against Woongarrah. I believe it will come down to the team that makes the least mistakes on the day.”
In just their second year in the competition, Kincumber have come leaps and bounds from where they were last season to assert themselves as one of the competition heavyweights. John Jiggins couldn’t be prouder of his team as he knew they had the potential to reach great heights.
“Making finals is a huge achievement. I told the Kincumber WPL girls at the beginning of the year I believed we could finish top four and that was our goal for the season. To accomplish that together is a testament to our hard work and determination.”
“It has been a long time since the club has made finals in women’s premier league and something they can be very proud of. Lots of work has been put into strengthening the pathways to WPL football at Kincumber and you can see that through our WPL results and also the results of the junior women’s teams at the club.”
Getting to Finals is one thing, making your mark in Finals is another as Kincumber will enter with little to no finals experience and as underdogs, but Jiggins is adamant his side performs better when they aren’t favourites.
“The team does well under pressure. We enjoy rising to the occasion and taking on the top WPL teams. In saying that, I have been impressed throughout the year with the senior players in the squad and the support they provide the younger players.”
“Kincumber’s strength is the depth they have across their squad, the senior players bringing maturity and experience along with the younger players providing energy and fresh ideas.”
“Umina are a tough squad. Our previous meetings have been extremely close, and we have often walked away feeling we lost games we could’ve won or drawn. Our biggest challenge will be staying focused and keeping up with Umina throughout the entire 90 minutes.”
Kincumber enters this must-win fixture coming off a 3-2 loss against last-place Woongarrah. However, form goes out the window when it comes to finals and it’s all about who is better on the day and can walk away victors, something Kincumber is yet to do against Umina this year.
The instructions from Jiggins to his team are simple and he backs them to come out on top if they can play to their potential. “Playing to our strengths. The Kicumber WPL squad have had some tough games throughout the season which has challenged how we want to play. Those difficult games have allowed us to learn to play under pressure and fight for our victories.”
“If we stick to our game plan, work hard for one another, and most importantly enjoy the occasion of finals football, I think we have a great chance of taking the win.”
Match Official – Christopher Robinson
Major Semi Final
Terrigal v East Gosford
In a rematch of the 2023 Grand Final, the two competition heavyweights will be vying to secure their place in a second consecutive Grand Final as defending premiers East Gosford look to overcome 2024 League Champions Terrigal in their quest for back-to-back Grand Final wins.
It has been another fantastic year for Gab Blanch at the helm of the Terrigal Tords who secured their second straight first-place finish. Finishing the year with a record of 16 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss, it has been another dominant year from Terrigal who look to go one better in 2024 with a Grand Final win.
Blanch stated what is different about this side compared to last year that will be able to go all the way this time around. “I see a renewed sense of belief in this group. We know our areas of weakness and really learnt to address them this year, whilst continuing to improve at what we already did so well. The feeling in the camp is different this year.”
As all the other WPL teams played their final match last weekend, Terrigal enjoyed their final bye-round. When questioned if this game came at a good time or would she of liked to keep the momentum rolling into this weekend, Gab said.
“The bye was a positive for us. We had a busy run with make-up games during the last round so the break has been timely for us. The players and staff were able to enjoy a team bonding event and to relax and genuinely enjoy each other’s company, I believe that only helps us in our preparation for finals.”
This Terrigal side have only conceded a total of five goals in their entire 18 fixtures, a truly remarkable statistic that shows the quality of this backline and the team as a whole who defend as if their lives depend on it.
This match-up with East Gosford will mark their fifth meeting this season as the Tords have only come up short in one fixture against the Rams all year.
Their first meeting was in the Association Cup Final as Terrigal put on a goalscoring clinic to win 6-0 and claim their first piece of silverware for the season.
Their first encounter during the season saw Terrigal win again, this time 2-0. However, East Gosford got one back on them a week later with a 2-0 victory of their own. Their final fixture came in Terrigal’s last game of the season as Terrigal got back to winning ways over the Rams, securing three points in a 3-0 win.
Blanch spoke on these fixtures, stating her side learnt more about themselves in a pivotal moment in their season. “Notably, we learnt how to lose, something we hadn’t done this year until Round 2 when we met the Rams.”
“I guess that taught us more about us than them, but in all honesty was the blessing in disguise we needed to shape the back end of our season. The Rams can score goals, we know that. Our focus remains on us, what we need to do in every moment to get the result.”
“To win this weekend I guess it’s the obvious things that win games. We need to start well, play with maximum intensity and take our opportunities.”
Jorge Chavez and his squad stated at the start of the season that they want to defend their title of WPL Premiers and are now in the perfect position to do so.
At the start of the year, you knew East Gosford would find themselves in the Finals picture, but after losing multiple key players, including player of the year Tahlor Thackray and Golden Boot winner Kelly Hogan, there was uncertainty that the Rams were going to be able to live up to those expectations.
Nonetheless, Chavez was able to attract quality to replace those missing players, most notably Emma Hurley and the 2024 WPL Golden Boot winner Jess Dominello. Dominello’s incredible 25 goals has once again turned East Gosford into statistically the best-attacking team in the competition.
Chavez reflected on this achievement “It’s a huge achievement, not just from a coach’s perspective but from a player’s perspective to make the top four for only the third time in the club’s history, three years in a row now.”
“Especially after the huge success we had last year, and we lost roughly 60% of our players it was going to be tough trying to gel quickly and play the style of football we like to play.”
“We recruited really well, and we managed to push for that top-two finish again this year which gives us an extra chance at the grand final. I’m amazed at the way my players have responded this year, our style of football is all about scoring goals and it’s been a huge effort from everyone involved.”
Despite the opposition getting the better of them a few weeks ago, Jorge stated his side will be more prepared this Sunday. “Similar to previous years we’ve used the last game against Terrigal to try a few things tactically, trying different players in different positions so we can be better prepared come finals time.
“We learnt more about ourselves than the opposition I feel, I am pretty comfortable with our tactics going forward and hopefully the girls can pull up with the game plan and get the win on Sunday.”
Chavez had high praise for Terrigal ahead of the weekend as he prepared his Rams to be ready from the first whistle to the final whistle. “Terrigal have proved to be a very well-instructed team that relies heavily on their defence and use long balls to catch us out on the counterattack.”
“We need to be ready from the get-go, they’re going to be extra hungry especially what happened last year in the grand final we just got to match the intensity in the initial 15 minutes.”
“We need to make sure that we keep the key players under control, the two key players are definitely Maddie and Tahlor, their going to be switched on and be hungry to get a win against the old club as well”
Match Official – Russell Kirkland
Semi Final Fixtures –
