2023 Football Victoria Women's State Knockout Cup Explained

2023 Football Victoria Women's State Knockout Cup
Country:	Australia
Dates:	3 March 2023 – 13 August 2023
Num Teams:	100
Defending Champions:	Calder United
Matches:	98
Goals:	460
Scoring Leader:	Dayna Stevens Ebru Baykan (9 goals each)
Prev Season:	2022

The 2023 Football Victoria Women's State Knockout Cup is the ongoing 11th season of the Football Victoria Women's State Knockout Cup (known as the Nike F.C. Cup for sponsorship reasons). The competition was open to all women's clubs in the state of Victoria.

Calder United are the defending champions, having beaten South Melbourne to secure their 5th title in a row in the previous season's final.^[1]

Format

	Clubs entering in this round	Clubs advancing from previous round	Number of games
First round (41 clubs)	20 clubs from Women's State League 3 11 clubs from Women's State League 4 10 clubs from regional and metropolitan leagues	N/A	18 (5 byes)
Second round (60 clubs)	20 clubs from Women's State League 1 17 clubs from Women's State League 2	23 winners from first round	30
Third round (41 clubs)	11 clubs from Victorian Premier League Women's	30 winners from second round	20 (1 bye)
Fourth round (32 clubs)	11 clubs from National Premier Leagues Victoria Women	21 winners from third round	16
Fifth round (16 clubs)	No clubs enter the fifth round	16 winners from fourth round	8
Quarter-finals (8 clubs)	No clubs enter the quarter-finals	8 winners from fourth round	4
Semi-finals (4 clubs)	No clubs enter the semi-finals	4 winners from quarter-finals	2
Final (2 clubs)	No clubs enter the final	2 winners from semi-finals	1

First round

A total of 41 clubs entered in the first round: 10 from regional and metropolitan leagues (tier 7), 11 from Women's State League 4 (tier 6), and 20 from Women's State League 3 (tier 5). The draw for rounds one and two was made on 22 February 2023.^[2]

Notes:Byes for Bell Park (7), Pascoe Vale (5), Moreland Eagles (5), Melton Phoenix (6), and Upfield (5)

Second round

A total of 60 clubs played in the second round: the 23 winners from the first round, 17 clubs from Women's State League 2 (tier 4), and 20 clubs from Women's State League 1 (tier 3).

Third round

A total of 41 clubs played in the third round: the 30 winners from the second round, and 11 clubs from Victorian Premier League Women's (tier 2).

Notes:Bye for Bundoora United (3)

Fourth round

A total of 32 clubs played in the fourth round: the 21 winners from the third round, and 11 clubs from the National Premier Leagues Victoria Women (tier 1).

Fifth round

The draw for the fifth round was made on 26 April 2023, consisting of the 16 winners from the previous round. Women's State League 2 North-West team Avondale was the lowest ranked team in the draw.^[3]

Quarter-finals

The draw for the quarter-finals was made on 29 May 2023. Casey Comets and Essendon Royals were the only non-NPL teams left in the draw.^[4]

Semi-finals

The draw for the semi-finals was made on 27 June 2023. Casey Comets were the only non-NPL team left in the draw.^[5]

Notes and References

1. News: Calder United Claims Fifth Straight Nike F.C. Cup Crown . Nick . Hughes . Western United FC . 8 August 2022 . 26 May 2023.
2. Web site: Nike F.C. Cup Round 1 & 2 Draw. www.footballvictoria.com.au. 22 February 2023. 15 June 2023.
3. Web site: Nike F.C Cup Round 5 Draw. 26 April 2023. www.footballvictoria.com.au. 15 June 2023.
4. Web site: Nike F.C. Cup Quarter-Final Draw. www.footballvictoria.com.au. 29 May 2023. 15 June 2023.
5. Web site: Nike F.C. Cup Semi-Finals locked in. www.footballvictoria.com.au. 27 June 2023. 15 July 2023.