Geraldton fall just short of gold as Carnarvon finish on a high in Football West Country Championships

The Football West Country week championships drew to a close as Geraldton fell just short of a gold medal while Carnarvon finished a tough week on a high. Nine teams from Geraldton and three from Carnavon wrapped up their country carnivals with the finals taking place on Friday. All teams played finals to determine final placings with Geraldton having two sides in gold medal matches with the under-11As and the under-12 girls both falling short. The under-11s faced Country Coastal Junior Soccer Association in their final who had finished with a 4-2-3 record, while Geraldton had only lost one game in the group stage. But CCJSA saved their best performance for last scoring five goals to take the gold medal 5-1. The under-12 girls side also faced CCJSA in their final and the two sides could not be separated in regular or extra time and had to go to penalties. Unfortunately, Geraldton came out on the wrong end of the ledger settling for silver after pushing the ladder leaders all the way. In the other grades, Geraldton took bronze in the under-11Bs, the under-14 girls and the under-15 A-division. The under-17s contested for the third/fourth place finals as did the under 15Bs. The under-13Bs fought in the fourth/fifth place finals, while the under-13s A-side contested settled for the fifth/sixth final. Among strong team performances, there were individual accolades for sisters Zoe and Amelie Dumont, with Zoe best and fairest for the under-12s while Amelie was runner-up in the under-14s Deegan Bryan was runner-up best and fairest in the under-13B division. Carnarvon had endured a tough group stage of the competition as they finished towards the bottom end of their respective divisions. But there was success to be had on the final day as they avoided last place with a 1-0 win over Newman in the under-11B division. Their under-13B’s side drew with Port Hedland final in the ninth/10th final while the under-15B side finished their tournament without a win.