December 2, 2019

UOW player wins golden boot in international tournament

Team wins silver in football university world cup

University of Wollongong (UOW) striker Marcus Beattie has won the golden boot in China at the inaugural FISU University Men's Football World Cup.

Beattie scored a goal in the grand final on Sunday night (1 December) bringing his tally to six goals from six games.

Unfortunately it was not enough for the Wollongong side, representing the University and Oceania, to seal a victory, and the squad will return from the tournament with the silver medal.

In a packed Jinjiang Football Park Stadium, watched by 22 other participating teams and 7500 spectators, the Australians and Uruguayans battled it out in the title clash.

UOW's keeper saves a goal in the grand final match on Sunday night.

UOW, coached by former Socceroo Luke Wilkshire, lost 2-1 to University of the Republic from Uruguay in extra time.

Uruguay scored first in the fourth minute, and Beattie replied less than 10 minutes later, sending the crowd into raptures.

The deadlock continued, and the game went into extra time, where Uruguay’s captain scored from a penalty-kick in the 113th minute.

It marked the end of an exhilarating two weeks, where more than 400 athletes from five continents came together for a celebration of football, friendship and fair play.

UOW Vice-Chancellor Paul Wellings CBE followed the tournament intently, watching UOW’s games via a livestream.

“It’s a truly amazing achievement to have come so close,” Professor Wellings said.

“For our students, it has been an invaluable experience.

“They worked hard for the opportunity to represent their University and this region, and their discipline has brought outstanding results.”

The squad includes players from state and regional competitions including NSW National Premier League, Illawarra Premier League, and Illawarra District League.

The side underwent 10 weeks of preparation, training three times per week, before winning UniSport Nationals on the Gold Coast in late September. This followed gold at Nationals in 2018, where the team qualified to play in the University World Cup.

The final placings were, GOLD: The University of the Republic (Uruguay), SILVER: The University of Wollongong (Australia), BRONZE: Myongji University (South Korea).

The women's final resulted in the University of Ottawa (Canada) defeating Paulista University (Brazil) 1-0.