Photo courtesy of Andrea Warren
The Fire Under 15 Girls are now League Champions after defeating Olympic FC 2-1 at Goodwin Park on Sunday, August 10.
Fire clinched the nail-biting match in the last ten minutes of play, securing the three points needed to take out the title. The girls now sit sixteen points clear of second-placed Olympic heading into the last four games of the season. This means they cannot be overtaken, as there are only a possible 12 points left to win before the season finishes.
This is the first season Coach Jarrod Rodios and Assistant Coach Samara Christmas have worked with the girls, and both coaches said they were both very proud of the team.
“It’s a great feeling to have clinched the title with still four games to play. The girls completely deserve their success,” Rodios said.
“We have a very strong squad in all positions, but I believe it is the girls’ bravery and commitment to the football we have been striving to play that helped us rise so high above the pack.
“We set out from our first training session with a clear idea and plan for the type of football we wanted to play. We aimed to play a high possession, intense pressing style of football and from day one the girls were very eager and keen to learn and listen to my ideas and tactical concepts.”
The girls also faced many challenges across the season, overcoming several injuries and working around player availability with such a high number selected in the State team.
But all the challenges became worth it when the girls faced Olympic on Sunday, knowing they could take out the title.
“Our team was very aware of the situation and having lost the title to Olympic last year (in the U14 Girls competition) the chance to win it this year against them was a major motivator. We trained a lot harder during the week as we were calling this ‘our grand final’. I couldn’t be more proud of the effort the girls put in on Sunday,” Rodios said.
The game itself went right down to the wire, with the Fire trailing 1-0 most of the match.
“At half-time it was clear we hadn’t had the greatest of first-halves and the girls were feeling a little nervous due to the occasion as a lot of the simple things weren’t being executed like normal,” Rodios said.
“Although it was too late to prevent Olympic scoring early, we worked out their game plan and I promised the girls that now we had nullified their goal scoring threat, Olympic wouldn’t score again and it was all down to us. I reminded them that all we needed was one goal and tried to lift their confidence by reminding them we have scored at least one goal in 20 out of 21 games this year and in most of those games we scored two or more!
“After the game, it was a mixture or relief, pride and excitement. After conceding so early, a few heads dropped and I was worried we would fall into the ‘oh well, we will just win next week’ attitude. Thankfully, the girls proved me wrong and worked the hardest I have seen them work all season which made for a very intense and exciting finish to the game.”
Rodios and Christmas both said they were pleased to have been involved with the team this year.
“Its been a great challenge with its ups and downs but both Samara and I have gained a lot of valuable experience and are extremely thankful for the opportunity given to us . At times it was difficult to juggle three sessions a week with driving to Brisbane most days for University but I am lucky enough to have a great assistant coach in Samara who was always their to help out and take sessions if need be.”
Although the League Title is theirs, the Under 15 Girls have no intention of slowing down for the last few rounds.
“At the first training back after playing Olympic the girls had already decided there will be no taking the foot off the pedal and letting the lead diminish,” Rodios said.
“They plan to see the season out playing good football and continue the good results and their lead, which I believe is a credit to their attitude and work ethic.”
The Under 15 Girls will next take on Brisbane City at Spencer Park on Sunday, August 24.
