Albany sides earn a silver and two bronze medals after sending 10 teams to Football West’s junior country week

Albany teams entered all 10 of the Football West junior country week competitions, reaching one final and collecting two bronze medals. They reached the showpiece match in the girls under-17 McCallum event against Country Coastal but lost out on penalties and missed the opportunity to collect three titles on the trot. The under-15 mixed side were third on their ladder following the round-robin matches and walloped Karratha 5-0 in their play-off to clinch third place overall. The under-14 girls beat Country Coastal 2-1 in their play-off to finish third, after an own goal and a strike from Makiah Suttie. In the girls under-17 final, Amaya Dobbe put Albany ahead in the 35th minute but Brianna Spinelli levelled for Country Coastal two minutes before half-time. Georgia Whitelaw and Lumeah Masih scored in the shootout, but Albany failed with their next penalty and Country Coastal clinched the win 4-2. In the earlier rounds, Albany had topped the table after winning six and drawing two of their eight pool matches. Dobbe bagged five goals in her nine outings overall to be Albany’s top scorer. Coach Joe Trichilo said it had been an honour to lead the side which will lose Masih, Jessica Baines, Siri Matthews, Belle Groenewold and Shylah Gough, who will be over-age next year. “They are great to be around, so it was very emotional at the end,” he said. “I’m so proud of them, especially the girls who took the penalties under a lot of pressure and in front of a really vocal crowd. “It is always emotional to lose players for the next year; it’s sad to see but it is part of the process, and it happens every time.” The under-15 mixed side beat Goldfields, Leeuwin-Naturaliste and Country Coastal but lost to Leeuwin second time around and went down to Karratha in the round-robin matches. They were able to turn the tables against Karratha in the bronze medal play-off, dominating the contest and bagging four of their five goals in a compelling first half. The under-17 mixed side reached the third-place play-off but had to forfeit to Leeuwin-Naturaliste due to their number of injuries. The under-12 girls side were fourth in their competition. The tournament, which was in its 50th year, was held at the Kingsway Sporting Complex in Perth and was completed earlier this month. The Albany contingent included 150 players, 15 coaches and 10 team managers.