HOSTS Northern Areas FA (Nafa) once again stumbled at the final hurdle, losing 3-2 to Breidbach in the sixth annual national inter- local football association tournament which ended at the Glenville FC field yesterday.
Since the inception of the tournament in 2008 Nafa has flattered to deceive, only managing penultimate showings in three cases.
Last year was their worst performance when they failed to reach the knockout stages.
In addition to the hosts, seven other football associations – Cape and District, Northern Suburbs (Cape Town), Padsa (Pietermaritzburg), North End FA (East London), Breidbach (King William’s Town), Makana (Grahamstown) and Nodefa (Uitenhage) took part in the tournament which started on Friday.
The teams were divided into two groups and played a round- robin with the top two in each section advancing to the knockout cup stage yesterday.
In the first semifinal Breidbach beat Nefa 2-1 while the hosts edged out Cape and District 5-4 in a penalty shootout.
In the under-17 final, Cape and District beat neighbours Northern Suburbs 1-0. However, Suburbs did not go home empty handed. They beat Padsa 1-0 in the u-15 finals.
The junior Goodwill Tournament, which was played among local associations alongside the inter-district tournament, was an all-Northern Areas affair.
The Nafa Lions beat the Nafa Elephants 6-5 in a sudden-death penalty shootout.
The final score in the three matches was 0-0 at the end of regulation time.
The next national inter-local football association tournament will be hosted by Northern Suburbs in Cape Town.
Sport
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