MANLY WARRINGAH FA

There is no doubt that the 2022 season tested the patience of everyone in the Manly Warringah Football Association (MWFA) with the rain throwing up challenges following two-years of COVID-19 disruptions.

A rain event that sunk 12 fields on the weekend of the start of the season made the task of mowing grass, erecting posts, and changing from summer to winter sports, followed by another long period of rain towards the back end of the season made it difficult to catch up on matches.

It was a massive effort by the MWFA football community, which was led by the Club Presidents, Committees, and volunteers, who were understanding and supportive throughout the season.

Challenges and obstacles breed resilience and satisfaction, and the sight of Cromer Park full to the brim for three days of Grand Finals was a sight for sore and tired eyes. Bigger crowds than ever before for all three days were an illustration of the exclamation point a Grand Final puts on the story of a season. After three years it was wonderful to see young and old, men and women take out Grand Finals instead of calculations defining the winners and losers.

One of the success stories in 2022 was the MWFA breaking through the 35% mark for the percentage of female footballers. The MWFA now has four clubs that boast female numbers of 40% or higher and that figure is sure to continue to grow when Australia co-hosts the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™.

It is no coincidence that female teams led the way in the Football NSW Champion of Champions tournament, which was held for the first time in three years. Four MWFA teams from four different clubs made the Grand Final with the Manly Allambie W12s, Pittwater RSL W15s, CC Strikers U18s and the Seaforth Women’s Premier League teams making it through to the big day.

The Manly Allambie W12s went down 1-0, the CC Strikers U18s lost 2-1 thanks to a goal with just two seconds left to play but the Pittwater RSL W15s and the Seaforth WPL team were declared NSW Champion of Champions. The Pittwater team dominated the final against Emu Plains, winning 3-0 thanks to goals from Chloe Currie (2) and Maya Atkinson.

Meanwhile, the Seaforth Women’s Premier League team completed a clean sweep of all four trophies in 2022 by defeating Coogee United 2-1 with goals to Sophie Tetley in the 2nd minute and Julia Murphy, who scored an extra time golden goal winner in the 110th minute. The Champion of Champions victory came after the Seaforth girls, led by coaches Chris Wood and Riley Kilpatrick, took out the MWFA Cup

(midweek knockout), the league championship and the grand final, capping off an almighty year for the girls.

The greatest recognition goes to the volunteers, Committee Members, Presidents, and delegates at the 17 Clubs and the MWFRA. A lot of people put in a lot of effort to be able to coordinate the MWFA Clubs and competition and ensure 19,500 people enjoy their weekend football matches each weekend.

Over the coming months, the association will once again host a ParaRoos international between Australia and the USA and then we will dive headlong into the MWFA Women’s World Cup in 2023, where we will be using the excitement around the FIFA’s international event to drive growth amongst young female, football players, coaches and referees.