Another South Coast championship has sharpened Albion Park's focus for the upcoming Champion of Champions tournament, coach Richard Davis has declared.
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Park won the grand final 3-nil over arch-rivals University, but only after absorbing sustained pressure, particularly in the first half.
The game was scoreless at half-time, before Albion Park went ahead shortly after, star goalscorers Brittany Ring and Rylee McGartland finishing off the job with late goals.
Winning a NSW Champion of Champions trophy would be their sixth piece of silverware this season, having already captured the Bonnie Lassie and Johnny Warren cups, as well as the league, State Cup and now grand final triumph.
They take on Dunbar Rovers in the round of 16 on September 22, who beat them 2-1 in last year's tournament final.
"After the game the girls were already talking about playing at the champion of champions, so hopefully we can have another shot at it," Davis said.
"We know how tough Dunbar are to beat, so we'll just enjoy the grand final win for a few days and see if everyone wants to push on and play.
"To have a shot at six trophies in one season is pretty amazing, it shows how special this group is, they're like family."
Before the game, Davis said he was unsure if it would be the end of an Albion Park era, as a number of top players would consider their playing future after the season.
Albion Park have won the past six grand finals, four State Cups and four premierships, including a run of more than 50 games unbeaten during that time.
To have a shot at six trophies in one season is pretty amazing
- Richard Davis
But they had to rely on all their experience and desperation after a Uni onslaught.
Goalkeeper Aleisha Chessell earned player-of-the-final honours, making a number of crucial stops, including a low diving effort to push a Uni strike past the post.
"Uni played a great game, they really took it to us," Davis said.
"We had to soak up a lot of pressure and it was a lot tighter than the 3-nil scoreline showed, they deserve a lot of credit Uni.
"Our defence scrambled really well and we just had that experience in the second half to go on and win."
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