PANORAMA FC's run in the Australia Cup is officially over, but they went down fighting until the very last whistle.
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Up against Illawarra Premier League heavyweights and reigning champions Coniston FC in round five of qualifying at Proctor Park on Anzac Day, the Goats put up a brave performance, going down 3-1.
The gulf in class was apparent at times, with Coniston racing to a 2-0 lead at the break.
And after getting out to 3-0 just after the hour mark, the Goats pulled one back with 10 minutes to go, when Jayden Staatz scored from the spot.
Panorama coach Jade Hadfield said he was proud of his team's performance.
"I said to the boys when we got into the sheds first thing [before the game], 'We've already succeeded, as far as I'm concerned'," he said.
"Obviously it would've been good to go further. It always is but from our perspective, it was all about experiencing a game against top level competition, the likes that we won't play in WPL.
"I think this puts us in really good stead for the year ahead."
The score on the day could've been a lot worse had it not been for the heroics of Goats goal keeper Chris Davis, who denied the Wollongong outfit on numerous occasions.
Adam Timpano-Voloder and Adrian Cabral were the scorers for Coniston in the first half and Arthur Hugon would make it 3-0 for the visitors on the 65th minute mark.
But the Goats kept on fighting.
Jaiden Culbert had a chance deflected off the post and with 10 minutes to play, the Goats won a penalty.
Jayden Staatz made no mistake, blasting the ball past the Coniston goal keeper.
Try as they did, but the Goats couldn't find another goal and Coniston held on to win by two goals.
Coniston captain Daniel Loe said he was pleased with the result.
"It was a big trip, a six hour trip. It's really great team bonding," he said.
"It's great to come out here and I thought Panorama represented the area very well.
"It was a tough battle on Anzac Day and I was happy to come out on top in the end."