Title joy for Bears

The Winston Hills Bears fought until the very end of a tight match to win the Under-17 Boys PUMA Champion of Champions on Sunday.

The Winston Hills Bears won the 17 Boys PUMA Champion of Champions on Sunday, October 23. Picture: Football NSW/George Loupis

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The Winston Hills Bears fought until the very end of a tight match to win the Under-17 Boys PUMA Champion of Champions on Sunday.

The Bears faced Epping FC in Football NSW’s premier grassroots football tournament on Sunday afternoon at Valentine Sport Park.

Epping scored first from a free-kick but Winston Hills countered with a strike from 25 yards on the stroke of halftime.

The game remained on a knife-edge in the second half with both sides missing their fair share of chances.

An Epping corner resulted in a scramble inside the six-yard box followed by a goal, but the referee signalled to play on.

Winston Hills took the lead and, with the game approaching fulltime, Epping grabbed a piece of luck from another throw-in.

Attempting to clear the throw, a defensive header bounced into the goal to lock things at 2-2, with the game being forced to extra time.

The penalty shootout had the crowd holding its breath, but Winston Hills took an early lead and remained composed to win 5-4.

The Bears will feature along with all the under-18 Champion of Champion teams in a special halftime parade during round eight of the Hyundai A-League match between Sydney FC and Adelaide United on Saturday, November 26.