Despite a slow start, we managed a 2-1 victory over Mater Maria Catholic College in our first game. We initially fell behind to a penalty but showed impressive resilience to equalise at 1-1 by halftime with a breakaway goal from Tom Bayss, before eventually securing the win with a goal from Austin Tebbutt.

Our second match of the day was a challenging affair against St Paul’s Catholic College, where St Edward’s was kept in the game by some stellar saves from Riley Herring. Although we started finding consistency in our attacks, breaking down the strong opposition backline proved difficult. The deadlock was finally broken in the second half when Jeremy Gerber headed in a free kick from just outside the box, ending the game with a 1-0 victory for us.

Following this match, our luck turned when the boys lost a closely contested battle against St Peter’s Catholic College. St Peter’s brought size and physicality to the match, and despite a late goal in the second half by Ethan Rowell after impressive midfield work from Raife Owen, we finished the match down 1-2.

Our next match was also hotly contested against another local rival, MacKillop Catholic College. They too had impressive size in their ranks, making it challenging to penetrate their defense. Despite solid chances in the first half, the score remained 0-0 at halftime. We began the second half with an impressive spell of possession and eventually capitalised on our opportunities, scoring two goals in quick succession – a solid finish from Tom Bayss and another from a free kick outside the box by Tristan Austin, securing a 2-0 victory.

At this stage in the tournament, our results meant that our final pool game would be against St Leo’s Catholic College. A win would guarantee us a spot in the final as joint pool winners, while a loss would cement second place for us. The game proved to be a well-matched challenge, and it showcased some of the best football we played all day. St Leo’s were also a strong side, and their coach praised our boys’ ability to control possession in midfield. In the second half, we continued our quality and took the lead with an impressive finish into the top corner by Tom Bayss, his third goal of the day.

Unfortunately, the tournament final did not go well for the boys. An unfortunate handball on the line by one of our otherwise excellent defenders led to a penalty and, somewhat harshly, a red card. After conceding the penalty, we faced an uphill battle with a player down for most of the match. Despite some fantastic efforts from the boys who never gave up, we ended the match 0-3.

Overall, it was a fantastic day of football, with the boys playing in the spirit of the game and representing themselves and the College remarkably well. Special mention goes to our fantastic student referee, Nicholas Snelson, who officiated our matches fairly and professionally on the day.