Up early for a two-plus hour drive to Valentine Park and a 9am kickoff, the girls started slowly and battled to stay in touch with the Lilli Pilli team, who got on the scoreboard at the five minute mark when their striker beat our defence to score the first goal.

The STFA Girls then shook of the travel tiredness and pressured their opponents and for some time, and even managed to gain the upper hand.

They were unlucky not to even the score mid-way through the half when Lilly Skilly put an inswing left footed corner that the Lilli Pilli Keeper failed to hold.

The ball dropped to ground only to hit the near upright and go out for another corner. The resulting corned was cleared by the defending team.

With the score at 1-0 against them at half time, the STFA girls regrouped and went on the attack in the second half.

Once again, they were unlucky not to even the score as they were by far the best team on the field during the second half.

Despite their dominance, they found Lilli Pilli's defence well-drilled as they pushed the STFA girls back each time they looked likely to score and force their way back into the game.

With time running out the STFA girls ran themselves into the ground in an effort to take the game into extra time but the clock was against them and the girls had to settle for a 1-0 loss which put them out of the competition.

It was a credit to the STFA team, which contained four players under 11 years of age, that they were able to match it with four top Sydney teams in this competition where they had three wins and a 1-0 loss in the semi-final.

Statistics for this side show the team played 29 games for the season, with four draws, seven losses, and a whopping 18 wins. The girls also managed 41 goals and had only 18 goals scored against them.

As the STFA girls wind down from a hectic season, they can now use the off-season to polish their skills and may potentially return to the field even more dangerous than they were in 2019.

For now, the girls will rest and recover, deservedly so after a successful year.

Did you know the Goulburn Post is now offering breaking news alerts and a weekly email newsletter? Keep up-to-date with all the local news: sign up here.