What is driving Shellharbour women's against NSW's best in the Sapphire Cup

The defending IWPL grand final champions beat a formidable opponent in the Sapphire Cup round of 32 in the form of Camden Tigers, 3-1.

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The competition mirrors the men's Waratah Cup knockout competition and derives its name from the former 'NSW Sapphires' team who were part of the former Women's National Soccer League. The competition sees the best teams in the state go head-to-head.

The win for Ron Fogarty's side secured a spot in the quarter finals of the competition, meaning they are one of 16 teams left standing.

And despite the potential of coming up against a team with more quality and a bigger budget in the next round, Shellharbour showed against Camden - which competes in the second tier of female football in the state - that they are far from underdogs.

With attention now turning to an upcoming Football NSW State Cup (separate to the Sapphire Cup) match away to Lokomotiv Cove on Sunday, May 26, Shellharbour coach Fogarty said his team wanted to prove they could compete with any team in NSW.

"This is a competition that the girls are really keen to go far in and test themselves against some of the stronger competitions within the state," Fogarty said.

"So to get the win and progress to the next round was a great achievement."

Shellharbour set the tone early against Camden at Myimbarr Park with three first half goals via Katelyn Leadbeatter, Maggie Page, and Maddi Costanzo that blew the Tigers away.

The visitors hit one back early in the second half but were no match in the end, with Shellharbour coming away with the 3-1 victory.

"We entered the Sapphire Cup in 2023 and got to round three, so were looking to push ourselves against some of those National Premier League teams and we were able to beat one last night," Fogarty added.

"It shows the strength of the local competition here."

Whilst Shellharbour are the sole IWPL side left in the competition, Illawarra representative team South Coast Flame are still alive in the competition following its win against Kellyville Kolts.

A Sariah Wilson penalty in the closing stages secured the Flame passage into the next round in a 2-1 victory.

The draw for the next stage of the competition is yet to be completed.