The 2022 Women’s Football Carnival of Nations came to an exciting end at the Darebin International Sports Center on Sunday 23 October, bringing a month-long festival of football to a close.
The tournament was a huge success and a true celebration of women’s football. The carnival brought the community together with a record 29 teams taking part, made up of 621 players registered through the Football Victoria GO Football platform.
The tournament ran over four consecutive Sundays in October and records continued to be broken throughout. An incredible 258 goals were scored in 51 games, resulting in an average of 4.9 goals per game. While that was down from last year’s 5.8 per game, there was more parity in the contest and less lopsided results, making for a very entertaining spectacle.
Part of the charm of Carnival is that it is inclusive of people of all abilities and skills. In the social division (Wattle), masters teams from Ballarat, Brunswick, Keilor, Hampton and Chelsea/Aspendale took part. Some players had never played on a full field before and enjoyed their first experience of a full-sized football match.
Despite being social, the Wattle Division was hotly contested. Sweden secured their first ever Carnival win with a 3-2 victory over Greece, sparking massive celebrations and in the Grand Final, the championship ended in a dramatic penalty shoot-out. The Bahamas and San Marino went head to head in a shootout after a tight game and after some tense moments, San Marino prevailed 4-3.
In the competitive division (Eucalyptus) there were 24 entries. Mauritius finished third after knocking out Malta and Germany to progress to the business end of the tournament, but after an admirable effort ultimately fell short.
The Grand Final saw Australia and Iceland clash in a replay of their Round 1 encounter in the opening match of the Carnival on 2 October.
In the quarter-finals they beat a star-studded Finland 5-2 and carried that form into their match against Iceland. Australia dominated play early on, displaying excellent ball movement to open up their opponents on several occasions and taking a 3-1 lead. Iceland fought back and got stronger as the game went on, creating several chances towards the end of the game. Despite their improvement, Iceland could not capitalize and Australia went on to claim the crown.
The month-long football carnival was an incredible celebration of our game and a fantastic celebration of women’s football.
The carnivals are not for profit and are run entirely by volunteers. Football Victoria congratulates the six women and four men of the Organizing Committee for putting on another outstanding tournament and thanks them for their contribution to our football in our state.
*All photos are credited to the Organizing Committee and Rob Cruse Photography.
