The NPL Women’s Finals Series kicks off this Sunday 30 August, as McKellar Park plays host to two First Grade and two Reserve Grade Semi-Finals between the top four sides in 2026.
Read each match preview below:
NPL Women’s Reserves
Match 1: NPL Women’s Reserves Semi Final- Belconnen United vs Canberra Croatia 10:00 am McKellar Park
Belconnen United takes on Canberra Croatia in the first Semi-Final of the day, as first place hosts second to lock in the first spot in the 2026 Grand Final, while the side defeated will take on the winner of Canberra Olympic or West Canberra Wanderers next week to decide the opponent.
The Blue Devils topped the table by 13 points, and secured the title with three rounds remaining of the campaign, losing just once in 20 matches, a Round 14 defeat to Canberra Olympic, and winning 18.
Darren Rodda’s team struck 114 goals across the campaign, a league-high by 45 goals while conceding just 11.
Their title rivals Croatia are the opponents, a side who won 13 of their 20 matches, falling to Canberra Olympic once and Belconnen twice, although a 1-1 draw in Round 10 of the competition between the top two will give Danny Hately’s side hope heading into the finals.
That draw sat in between an 8-1 win in Round 5, and a 5-0 win for Belconnen in Round 15, in amongst a dominant Blue Devils campaign.
Match 2: NPL Women’s Reserve Semi Final- Canberra Olympic vs West Canberra Wanderers 1:00 pm McKellar Park
Canberra Olympic hosts West Canberra Wanderers in the second Reserves Semi Final of the day.
Olympic concluded their season sitting just three points behind Croatia in second, after a campaign that began slowly, but ended in back-to-back wins against the top two.
Two points from their first five games against the title race leaders had Olympic trailing in the race for the top two, but a Round 14 3-0 victory against Belconnen, backed up by a 2-1 win against Croatia in Round 17, ended the campaign on a positive note for Brad Aspland’s outfit.
West Canberra made life difficult for last season’s Grand-Finalists, drawing 3-3 in Round 5, before a 2-1 Round 10 win and a 4-0 Round 15 win for Olympic places them as the favourites heading into Sunday’s match.
That 3-3 draw was the only occasion in which the Wanderers were able to lay a glove on the top three, but Mark Host’s team separated themselves effectively from the chasing pack by beating Tuggeranong and Majura FC on every occasion barring one Round 14 defeat.
NPL Women’s First Grade
Match 3: NPL Women’s First Grade Semi Final- Belconnen United vs Canberra Croatia 4:00 pm McKellar Park
Belconnen United hosts Canberra Croatia in the first of two later Semi-Finals, as the reigning quadruple-winners look to secure consecutive Grand Final wins.
Scott Conlon’s side enter the match having won the league by seven points, in a second undefeated campaign running for the Blue Devils.
The one change in 2026 however has been the strength of their challengers, with Belconnen unable to win a match against Croatia from the last three attempts.
Despite this, 125 goals scored, just six conceded, in and amongst 17 wins tells the tale of another dominants season, despite numerous departures at the beginning of the year.
As mentioned however, Croatia pose a distinct threat to the holders’ crown, having held Belconnen to back-to-back 1-1 draws, before a goalless stalemate concluded a positive campaign from Sam Odgers’ team.
The Deakin-based side hit 83 goals in their 20 matches, and conceded just seven, accolades that in any other competition would result in the securing of a league title.
Croatia fell to Olympic in the 2025 Preliminary Final and will know that a win on Sunday will result in the club’s first appearance at the final stage since winning against the Blue Devils in 2020.
Match 4: NPL Women’s First Grade Semi Final- Canberra Olympic vs Tuggeranong United 7:00 pm McKellar Park
Canberra Olympic takes on Tuggeranong United in the second First Grade Semi Final of the day.
Victor Yanes’ squad have had their struggles against Tuggeranong in 2026, despite Olympic sitting 18 points clear in third.
Following on from a 3-1 victory in Round 3, the 2024 Champions had to rely on a late penalty at home to salvage a 1-1 draw, before securing a narrow 1-0 success in Round 13.
Against sides at the peak of the NPL Women’s table, Olympic held a strong Croatia outfit on two occasions to a solitary point and were able to dispatch comfortably of teams in the bottom three.
Opponents Tuggeranong have had a season to remember, having experienced a Federation Cup Final, and now qualified for the 2026 Finals Series.
Mitch Stevens’ side concluded the campaign just four points above West Canberra Wanderers, recovering from an early season defeat to their rivals for fourth by securing a point in Round 14, and claiming a monumental three points in the penultimate round of the season.
Facing opponents above them on the table was a challenge, however that point against Olympic away from home will still offer motivation that they can beat their finals opponent, having executed a quality defensive and counter-attacking performance.
Watch every finals match LIVE on the Capital Football YouTube channel.
