On Sunday the Northern Tigers Girls Under 15s made history, winning the Football NSW Girls Youth League One competition with two games remaining after a 7-0 win over Sydney Olympic.
It’s the first top division title in the Tigers Women and Girls program since earning promotion from the second tier in 2016, finishing ahead of Blacktown Spartans, Sydney University and Football NSW Institute.
Coach Steve Burns acknowledged the efforts of the players and the club in the team’s success.
“To be honest I’ve been lucky enough to have a talented team of players to coach this season,” he said.
“It’s a true credit to the development pathway at Tigers, most of this team have come the whole way through our junior (SAP) programs.”
The squad features local juniors from community clubs Hornsby Heights, Kissing Point, Lane Cove, Lindfield, Northbridge and West Pymble, and over 70 seasons of combined experience in the Tigers development pathway.
Several players have worked their way through the entire development pathway at Tigers from the Under 10s Girls SAP (Skill Acquisition Phase) team through to the present Under 15s team.
“It is so empowering to see this group of players succeeding at this level after coming through the local pathway,” commented Eilidh Mackay, Girls SAP Technical Director and NSFA Head of Female Football.
“The club has come along in leaps and bounds over the past six years since earning promotion to now be producing players capable of competing with the best in the state.”
“This team has enjoyed a phenomenal season but has also had several players step up and support the Under 16s throughout the year when they’ve been short on players and in turn been helped out by the Under 14s.”
The regular season concludes with matches against Illawarra Stingrays and Sydney University before a two-week finals series and another potential opportunity for silverware.
2022 Girls Under 15s
Players: Dominique Brown, Olivia Callaghan, Sienna Cooper, Ariana Garland-Powell, Abigail Giles, Annie Hall, Amber Halliday, Blake Hughes, Laura Januszek, Teagan Jones, Sophie Justinek, Tegan Murray, Elise Oliver, Yasmin Peek, Natalie Russo, Bethany Tate, Margarida Vicente, Izabella Ziolkowski
Coach: Steve Burns
Assistant Coach: Sai van Wegen
Managers: Sandi Murray and Sue Brooman-Jones