Cambridge have tasted their first league defeat in more than a year.
Cambridge Football recently celebrated its 75th anniversary. Photo: Mary Anne Gill.
The newly promoted Northern League championship side was beaten 2-0 by former New Zealand footballing powerhouse North Shore in Auckland last weekend.
Hamilton Wanderers’ second win from two – 4-2 away to Manukau – left them top of the table, but no other Waikato sides in the league followed up opening day wins.
Melville lost 2-1 away to Mount Albert-Ponsonby – conceding a 90th minute goal – while Ngāruawāhia was beat 4-0 at Takapuna.
The premier Waikato domestic men’s competition starts on Saturday – with a 10 team league sorted. It comprises Cambridge, three Claudelands teams, Tokoroa, Wanderers, Huntly, Unicol and Te Awamutu plus Ōtorohanga, who were thought unlikely to have a team in the league.
The competition takes team from last year’s WaiBop league one, which fell over.
In the Southern Conference Waipā interest is low – Matamata, and Claudelands, Northern and West Hamilton make up the Waikato contingent alongside Ngongotahā, Papamoa and Otumoetai and Taupō.
Papamoa and Matamata opened with big wins last weekend.
Cambridge women opened their season last weekend with a 2-0 home loss to Birkenhead on their Northern League championship debut.
Cambridge Football Club’s top women’s team celebrates their promotion the northern league on September 29 with some of the players they mentored this season. – Photo Selina Oliver.
In the Waikato women’s league, Te Awamutu also fields a team in the Waikato women’s division which kicks off this weekend.
