Mudgee Gulgong Wolves progress to round three of Australia Cup after home-ground win against Brighton Heat FC

The Mudgee Gulgong Wolves' tenacity on the pitch has paid dividends, with the local club securing a round two Australia Cup victory on Saturday.

Down two players for the majority of the March 19 game against Brighton Heat FC, it was do or die for the Wolves, but with a stronger side and a can-do attitude, they now look to round three against Coogee United.

Although 45 minutes had since lapsed, the game didn't truly begin until moments before the half-time break when the Wolves secured a 1-nil lead, thanks to a penalty.

Fifteen minutes was all that was between the first and second send off for the Wolves, and after conceding a goal for Brighton to even the score, the Wolves battled nine men against 11 for the remainder of the half.

Extra time proved deadly, with Brighton earning themselves an extra goal to take a short-lived lead that came to an end when Mudgee put another goal on the board. And with a perfect penalty shootout showing, the Wolves took a 4-2 victory.

"It was a hard fought match. To come from behind to draw level was pretty amazing. Penalty shootouts are a lottery, anyone can win but we didn't miss," Mudgee Gulgong Wolves FC manager, Christopher Clegg said.

"For the guys to show such commitment and bravery... we were a lot fitter, we only used three subs and they used all of theirs, and we did it with nine men for 50-60 minutes.

"The Cup competition is exciting for all of these guys. All of the players have probably dreamed of being a professional player so to actually play in a competition where you could play professional players adds to the excitement.

"Mudgee is known for its tourism, wine, agriculture and mining. Who knows if we go on a bit of a run in the Australia Cup, people will be like 'what? They play football out there too!'."

Their Australia Cup showing has proved to be a valuable pre-season stint ahead of the Western Premier League's (WPL) start in April. Despite some potential overlap, the Wolves are confident they can continue to compete in both, should they remain in contention for the formerly-known FFA Cup title.

"We've got to have a lot of commitment, not just from the players but you've got to look towards people's employers and see if they can free us up so we can make plans, or hopefully with the right draw, get people from all over coming closer to Mudgee," Clegg said.

"Everyone is super excited for the WPL season, we've been committed to a strong pre-season. We want to build off the back of a good season last year and see if we can't win that competition.

"I think we'll be a top four team, we have ambitions of winning it [WPL] but we think we are big contenders for the final series once that comes around in September. C'mon you Wolves!"

The Mudgee Gulgong Wolves FC will face Coogee United FC on Saturday, March 26 at Moore Park for round three of the Australia Cup.

The Wolves have a bye in the first round of the WPL.

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