Written by Samantha Wilson
As part of the Bathurst District Football (BDF) Winter competition, Charles Sturt University Football Club (CSUFC) have been hosting the annual “Headspace Cup”, a charity match weekend to raise money and awareness for Headspace Bathurst since 2016.
Headspace is Australia’s National Youth Mental Health Foundation, providing early intervention mental health services to 12-25 year olds. Every year, Headspace helps thousands of people access vital support through their centres in communities across Australia.
Over the Headspace Cup weekend, the Stags (men) and the Vixens (ladies) challenge BDF teams and must either win at least 4/6 games on the day or win 3 games and have 1 draw to win the Headspace cup trophy.
Along with playing on the pitch, CSUFC also hosts a trivia night and a raffle to raise funds. Members and players of CSUFC also place bets on fellow players to score.
During the games, members and players of CSUFC aim to “Paint Proctor
Green” by switching up their game kit with a splash of green for Headspace.
The day started with both 4th grade Vixens teams kicking off at 9am, leading to two back to back wins. The Red Vixens beat Bathurst 75 FC (top of the ladder) 2-1 and the White Vixens beat Eglinton DFC 5-2.
Next the 4th grade Stags kicked off their match at 11am, however,
unfortunately lost against Mudgee-Gulgong Wolves FC, 4-0.
At 1pm our 2nd grade Stags kicked off and after a very close game finished off with a hard earned 2-1 win against Eglinton DFC, bringing CSUFC up to 3/6 wins for the day which meant we only needed 1 more win or a draw to take home the Headspace cup victory!
And finally, to wrap up the day, our 1st grade Stags and our 1st grade Vixens took on the pitch at 3pm. Our 1st grade Vixens unfortunately went down 3-1 against Mudgee Gulgong Wolves FC, meaning the 1st grade Stags had to either win or draw their game to bring home the Cup.
Members, players and supporters were on the edge of their seats watching the 1st grade men’s game against Panorama FC. The game was incredibly close and the score was 0-0 all the way up until the 88th minute.
After many attempted yet unsuccessful shots at the goal from the Stags, midfielder, Kieu Le, scored an impressive header after a corner kick with little to no time left.
The 1st grade Stags then carried this 1-0 scoreline through to the final whistle and the crowd celebrated because CSUFC had won the Headspace Cup for the first time since 2016!
The club this year also raised a total of $10,318, bringing the overall amount raised since 2016, to over $85,000 for Headspace Bathurst!!!
Click here to visit Headspace and find out more about their services and the amazing things they are doing to help young people!
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