Community-oriented Canberra Olympic are regulars at the Kanga Cup and will be seeking valuable experience against interstate sides at the 2024 edition to continue the development of their young talent.
With coaches Katrina Peric, a current Olympic player, and Courtney Attwood, a former player, at the helm of a strong Under-14s National Premier League (NPL) side this year, the club’s desire to take a community-centred approach to football remains its main ambition.
“I think Olympic always prides itself on being a very family-oriented club,” Attwood said. “Club culture is a big thing for us, it’s probably on par with winning trophies and having successful seasons.
“We really thrive on having good club culture and that goes from the seniors all the way down to our juniors, [so] we’ve got a lot of our coaches in the junior program who are players or ex-players at the club, giving back to the young ones, and for us, that’s what it’s about really.”
Looking at the squad competing in the Under-14 Female Cup category, Peric and Attwood’s side are entering the tournament with many new faces, in what both coaches describe as an age group with an overriding focus on fine-tuning their game.
“So, it’s two teams,” Attwood said. “Our Under-14s NPL team from last year and our Under-12s aKIDemy program team have come together, so I’d say half the girls have experienced the Kanga Cup, so for half of them it’s their first time.
“Under-14s,15s for us is about their development, points are perfect if you can get them but it’s not something that is the focus for us, it’s about the basic skills and the core development of being good footballers…and seeing the progression from the start of the season to the end.”
With the club continuing to experience the tournament regularly, the allure of the Kanga Cup remains prevalent due to the countless benefits brought about by a side’s involvement.
“I’ve been coaching Kanga Cup for the last three years, and it’s always a competition where we come in and it’s just a bit of fun,” Attwood explained. “The girls get together and it’s just one game after another, so you’re getting a lot of success, momentum, and confidence, and a lot of learning, but on the flip side the girls just seem to relax, it’s a good bonding experience.”
In addition to the enjoyment factor, the coaches say that the competition also provides a boost for the squad’s morale and confidence ahead of their return to league football.
“We find that our teams moving into the normal competition just take that next step, so we find from a development point of view it’s really great for us,” Attwood said. “The football then improves into the third round which is perfect timing for us when you’re in the back end of the season with your semis and finals.”
While the excitement of travel is not afforded to local sides such as Olympic, Peric says there are other positives to come out of their involvement.
“They’ve got to be exposed [to interstate teams],” she said. “And with your Sydney teams coming in, they’re that next level, they bring something else, so it’s like a full circle development that we don’t get in our own competition.”
“One day these girls will hopefully go on to nationals, and it’s not going to be a shock, it will be like, we know what New South Wales (NSW) teams are like, we’ve played interstate teams so it’s kind of getting them ready for future stuff which is good.”
In its essence, the Kanga Cup is about bringing together players and clubs from all different areas of the nation and beyond, which Attwood describes as another beneficial factor of Olympic’s continual participation.
“From a club perspective [we’re] able to make connections with some of these NSW clubs that we can look to potentially over the summer get some games in [against], travel to Sydney, get them to come here, so it’s building relationships and forming connections.”
Words: Sam Watson
