Tasmanian Football Cups

The Football Federation of Tasmania organises several annual Tasmanian association football (soccer) cups and tournaments alongside the regular league competitions that they also run. The first cup competition in Tasmania was the Falkinder Cup, which began in 1913. For nearly 60 years it was the state's premier football cup tournament, but was eclipsed by the Statewide Cup, and the pre-season Summer Cup. Various Cups and trophies have come and gone, and currently the main non-league tournaments in Tasmania are the Statewide Cup, and the three pre-season tournaments, the Summer Cup (south), the Steve Hudson Cup (north), and the North West Summer Cup (North West).

Falkinder Cup

Although they ran concurrently from 1963 to 1970 the Statewide Cup soon eclipsed it's historical southern rival, the Falkinder Cup, and replaced it entirely in 1970 as Tasmania's premier knockout cup football competition. Although most sides would certainly prefer the chance to walk away with the state's ultimate prize, the Tasmanian football (soccer) championship, this, the Statewide Cup, is certainly the second best trophy for Tasmanian Football sides to win.

Association Cup

The Ascot Gold cup was another pre-season tournament conceived in 1959 to raise additional sponsorship pounds to help finance struggling football in Tasmania. However, with the amount of different competitions growing, it only lasted for two seasons.The Summer Cup is a popular pre-season knock-out tournament which pits the best of the southern clubs against each other, and marks the start of the season. It is usually held in February and March and allows teams to gauge themselves against their opponents for the coming season. It can produce some interesting results, with some teams often still feeling rusty from the summer break.

Lloyd Triestino Cup (from 1976 DJ Trophy)

The Steve Hudson Cup is named for Stephen Geoffrey Hudson. Stephen passed away on the 26th November 1979 as a result of injury suffered whilst playing for the Launceston United Soccer Club.

In past years entries were received from both North and North West soccer Clubs however in latter years entries only Launceston based clubs with the occasional Southern team have made up the participants.

The competition has always been a Club based affair and at no time been organised by Football Federation Tasmania.

External links

* [http://www.footballfedtas.com.au Football Federation Tasmania - official website]
* [http://www.socceraust.co.uk/TAS/Champions/TASCUPWinners.htm - champions stats] {link Not Found}