This year, nineteen teams have travelled from Wagga Wagga to compete in the Kanga Cup once again! The Wagga City Wanderers have brought both club teams and teams that are a part of their Skills Acquisition Program (SAP), who are playing under the name of Football Wagga Wagga Academy.
The club was established in October of 2014 in the hopes of growing the football community in the Wagga Wagga, Riverina, and surrounding areas. They first started off competing in the New South Wales State League competition, then moving on to compete in the National Premier League and the Capital Premier League under the Capital Football competition based here in the ACT.
The club from Wagga operate with the philosophy to be able to provide a pathway for anyone, whether that be players, coaches, or volunteers, to get involved in an elite football program. They strive to contribute a space for their community to be challenged to unlock their fullest potential, while also fostering a safe and friendly environment for all of those who get involved.
This year at the Kanga Cup, the teams from Wagga have been immersing themselves in the positive atmosphere that the tournament provides. The coach of their under 13’s Female Plate team this year, Alan Tsang, shared what it is about the tournament that makes the club, and his team specifically, want to get involved year after year:
“Just the atmosphere, the kids love it. It’s a great week. Wagga has brought 19 teams I think, the club culture, the atmosphere, it’s just awesome.,” Tsang shared. “Just seeing the sportsmanship over the week, it’s awesome for the kids to see as well, you know, how we should be playing football, how we should be conducting ourselves.”
The event, to Tsang, provides a space to be able to see where his team sits in comparison to the rest of the country. The event is often used as a tool by many of the teams who attend for development and playing experience, taking their results back home to be used as an instrument to help them improve.
He also commented on the opportunity that Kanga Cup provides for the players to do what they love all week long!
“I think just the tournament itself is great, really!” Tsang said, “They love playing football. Just to be able to do this all week is so great.
“We come here just to test ourselves throughout the year.” Tsang said. You work hard all year and then you come and play teams with various capabilities, you face some really tough teams in this tournament, so it’s a good gauge of where we are at in regard to the rest of the country.”
The teams from Wagga return each year to fight for gold. They come to play and to win, but they also prioritise the love and enjoyment of the Kanga Cup experience and football overall.
“The goal is always to win it, at the end of the week you want to win it, you want to go away with the trophy. But our goal for the kids is just to have fun,” Tsang added.
The Wagga City Wanderers and Football Wagga Wagga Academy teams, as previously mentioned, make up 19 of a total 357 teams competing this year. Hopefully the Kanga Cup continues to see the return of these teams from the Wagga Wagga region for many years to come.
Words: Kate Reedy
