Huskies Men’s Futsal Clean Sweep

01/22/2013…Fort McMurray, Alberta – Practise makes perfect….or at least it will get you in good shape.

By ACAC Sports Writer Curtis J. Phillips

That is the belief of Keyano Huskies men’s futsal head coach Connor Brady, following his teams five game sweep at the opening tournament for Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference futsal hosted last weekend by Ambrose University College in Calgary.

During a three-day stand the Huskies defeated in order: Medicine Hat Rattlers 5-1, Red Deer Kings 5-3, Ambrose Lions 4-2, Lakeland Rustlers 5-3 and Olds Broncos 5-2.

Brady, a former Huskies outdoor soccer player (2005-2007), now into his first year behind the bench for outdoor and indoor seasons, attributes the team’s success to fitness.

“Every other team was coming up to us saying that they could not believe how fit we were,” said Brady of the weekend tournament, the second scheduled for Feb 15-17 at Lakeland College in Lloydminster. “For the past 30 days we have been practicing every day and sometimes twice-a-day with conditioning also

“It paid off 100%. People were stunned how fit the guys were but I wasn’t as I have seen the amount of hard work that they have put in

The Huskies also had to prepare for playing on a gymnasium floor rather than turf, which is what they are accustomed to at the Syncrude Sport & Wellness Centre (SSWC) in Fort McMurray.

“Not all of the other schools have the luxury to play and practice on (turf) what we do,” said Brady, who added that the Ambrose gymnasium was “fantastic for players and had great fan support all weekend.”

In order to prepare for the tournament, Brady and crew had to book in precious time at the SSWC Canadian National Resources Ltd. gymnasium due to the usage by men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball plus community time slots.

“We practiced most of the time on the turf (Shell Field, where play is constant as netting surrounds playing surface) but we snuck on when possible into the gymnasium to prepare for Ambrose. In a gymnasium you tend to run out of space as the sidelines are the same as the basketball court. Playing in that situation and with the skill level and talent we have, we tended to slow the game down as much as possible and let the ball do the work.”

While some of the ACAC participating futsal teams had rosters of 12-14 players, Keyano traveled south with just seven players: Marcos Betioli, Jonathon Cordoba, Alex Eby, Yves-Florent Pokou, Santiago Raigoza, Will Sudonick-Carriere and goalie Vahan Ercoba.

“They are an extremely tight group and like a family,” said Brady of the small roster.

“We will probably stick with the same number of players and the same core group and maybe add one or two more players. If it is not broke, there is no need to fix it.”

Jonathon Cordoba, nicknamed the Cobra, struck for nine goals during the weekend.

Brady was also high in praise of trainer Michael John Domanowski, who during the fall months was a goalie for the Huskies outdoor program. “He was keeping the guys fit and knot free and taping ankles and massaging sore legs. He kept us ready.”

Of the calibre of play in ACAC men’s futsal Brady concluded.

“It’s definitely stepped up a couple of levels. There is an incredible amount of talent out there.”

Weekend Results January 18-20,  2013

Keyano College Huskies at Ambrose University College in Calgary

Men’s Futsal  (5 wins 0 loss)

Sunday January 20, 2013
Keyano Huskies 5 Olds Broncos 2
Keyano Huskies 5 Lakeland Rustlers 3

Saturday January 19, 2013
Keyano Huskies 4 Ambrose Lions 2
Keyano Huskies 5 Red Deer Kings 3

Friday January 18 2013
Keyano Huskies  5 Medicine Hat Rattlers 1

ACAC Championship
March 15-16, 2013
Hosted by Olds College