After fifteen matches over four days at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra, the 2024 National Para Football Championships came to an exciting conclusion.
Football NSW has claimed its sixteenth successive title at the tournament, following a physical showdown against Football West.
Individual awards were presented following the final whistle with Football NSW lifting the National Para Football Championships trophy for the eighteenth time in the competition's history.
NSW DEFEND NATIONAL PARA FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS TITLE
Football NSW claimed the Gold Medal at the 2024 National Para Football Championships after overcoming a determined Football West side, 3-1.
With the stands packed, spectators were treated to a tense and fiery contest, as the two top teams fought for every inch in a match truly worthy of a Final.
The standout was CommBank Pararoo and Football NSW dynamo Daniel Campbell, whose strike power made the difference, scoring all three of NSW's goals and consistently testing Football West's defence throughout the match.
Football West continued pressing, with Connor Bunce narrowing the deficit to one goal just before half-time. Daniel Campbell's third goal came shortly after the second half resumed and proved to be the decisive moment, despite Football West fighting until the last second.
With over 70 caps for the CommBank Pararoos, Football NSW captain Ben Atkins-Illek, a veteran of CP Football in Australia, called this victory the sweetest he's experienced.
"It's an incredible feeling right now. It gets harder each year, WA put up a really good fight today. This is probably the hardest one we've ever won," Atkins-Illek said.
"We had to be confident against WA and take our chances when they came. They (Football West) really gave us a good game today.
"Winning the Para Nationals becomes more meaningful each year, especially as I get a bit older and enter the later part of my career. It's even more special watching the young players come through."
FAST STARTING VICTORIA CLAIM BRONZE MEDAL
Football VIC has secured the Bronze Medal at the 2024 National Para Football Championships with a commanding 5-1 victory over Northern NSW Football.
The Victorians hit the ground running, scoring three goals in the opening eight minutes, courtesy of CommBank Pararoo duo Christian Bitsikas and Jeremy Boyce. Northern NSW never dropped their heads, looking for opportunities on the counterattack and turning away the Victorian offence on numerous occasions.
The early onslaught proved too big of a mountain to climb for the young Northern NSW squad competing in their debut tournament as Football VIC maintained their lead for the remainder of the match, securing third place.
Player of the match Christian Bitsikas said the Bronze Medal was a reward for their hard work and dedication leading up to the tournament.
"It's a great feeling to win the Bronze Medal and to prove what we can do," Bitsikas said.
"Northern NSW is a new team with new players, so it was a good test for us. It was a relief to get the first goal early in the match, and we managed to keep the momentum from there.
"Overall, I'm very proud of our team. I think we can take a lot of positives from the win today and the tournament as a whole. I'm very proud of my teammates- we all worked very hard this year, so to come away with a medal is very good," Bitsikas concluded.
NATIONAL PARA FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS 2024 AWARD WINNERS
- FT1 of the Tournament: Rafferty Bacon (Football West)
- FT2 of the Tournament: Connor Bunce (Football West)
- FT3 of the Tournament: Daniel Campbell (Football NSW)
- Golden Glove: Christian Tsangas (Football VIC)
- Golden Boot: Giacomo Izzo (Football West)
- Young player of the Tournament: Giacomo Izzo (Football West)
- Female player of the Tournament: Katelyn Smith (Northern NSW Football)
- Bronze Medal player of the match: Christian Bitsikas (Football VIC)
- George Tonna Medal (Gold Medal player of the match): Will McGrath (Football NSW)
FINAL STANDINGS | NATIONAL PARA FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS 2024 | AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTE OF SPORT, CANBERRA, ACT
Position |
Team |
| 1 | Football NSW |
| 2 | Football West |
| 3 | Football VIC |
| 4 | Northern NSW Football |
| 5 | Football QLD |
| 6 | Football SA |
