Cambridge Cup

Cambridge’s best performance in football’s oldest cup competition has seen the club reach the third round – on 12 separate occasions.

Since first entering the Chatham Cup in the 1960s, Cambridge has never quite made the fourth round, despite giving a few bigger clubs a nervous time in the competition’s early rounds.

Other teams from the Waikato/Bay of Plenty have proven it is possible to reach the latter stages of competition.

Huntly Thistle (1971) and Ngaruawahia (1984) both reached the fifth rounds, while Waikato United were beaten finalists in 1992, losing 3-1 to Wellington’s Miramar Rangers.

Rotorua City – who now play in the local Bay of Plenty competition – lost the 1989 final 7-1 to Christchurch United.

The Chatham Cup, currently sponsored by ISPS Handa, was first contested in 1923.

Cambridge’s Chatham Cup record – best performances

1972: 3rd round – lost 3-2 to Claudelands Rovers (who went on to 5th round)
1974: 3rd round – lost 7-1 to Hamilton
1984: 3rd round – lost 3-1 to Lynndale (Auckland)
1994: 3rd round – lost 6-2 to Mt Wellington (Auckland) who have won the trophy seven times
1995: 3rd round – lost 4-2 to Mt Wellington (Auckland)
1996: 3rd round – lost 5-1 to University of Auckland
1999: 3rd round – lost 3-2 to Mt Albert-Ponsonby (Auckland)
2004: 3rd round – lost 5-1 to Lynn-Avon United (Auckland)
2005: 3rd round – lost 2-1 to Whakatane Town
2007: 3rd round – lost 4-0 to Manurewa (Auckland)
2008: 3rd round – lost 1-0 to Forrest Hill-Milford United (Auckland)
2014: 3rd round – lost 4-2 to Birkenhead United (Auckland), the 2016 cup winners

In recent years, Cambridge have given several Northern League Premier Division clubs a tough game before bowing out of the cup.

Against Birkenhead United, who had several New Zealand U-20 players in their side, in 2014, Cambridge were holding the visitors level with less than 20 minutes to go before succumbing 4-2.

In 2009, in a first round tie, Cambridge traded goals with high-flying Three Kings United before losing 6-3.

In 2017, Cambridge lost in the second round to Central United 4-2 at Kiwitea Street, playing a side filled with Auckland City’s national league players.

Enjoy Cambridge’s two goals from that game:

The first, from Glen Carmichael, was a long-range effort that gave Cambridge a 1-0 lead.