By Andrew Stackpool
PRESIDENT of the Combined Services Soccer Association (CSSA), Leut Paul Denneny, is encouraging more participation and support for ADF soccer.

His remarks came at the end of the Inter Service Soccer Nationals, which were held at Randwick Barracks, last month.

The competition incorporated the ADF vs Royal Engineers team.

The intense competition saw some 160 male and female players participate.

They included teams from the NSW Police, who had just returned from the World Police Games in Barcelona.

Leut Denneny said that despite the high operational tempo currently levied on the ADF it was encouraging to see individual units and the men and women of Defence giving soccer more flexibility.

"Sport is about teamwork, achieving and sticking together.

"Here we have teams giving 110 per cent, always physical, highly skilled and playing to their best.

"They want to be here, even if that means giving up leave and paying their own way to participate," he said.

Leut Denneny would like to see more money made available for ADF and indicated many ADF sporting teams are seeking corporate sponsorship to assist them.

"The extra funding will lift individual and team standards, further benefiting each individual sport," he said.

"ADF soccer is getting a higher profile than it used to, especially now that the women are putting up strong teams.

"The men are competing strongly as well and the standard of talent has international recognition.

"For example, during the last tour to Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia we played both military and National teams, although the latter are mostly made up of players from their conscripted Defence Forces.

Women performed exceptionally well in the Australian/Malaysian Championships, while the ADF are the Soccer Champions of the NSW Corporate Games.

The women's team has been undefeated against 17 teams, winning gold and silver over the last five years.

The men have won gold and silver twice while the Over-30s team has never been defeated since the Games' inception.

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