RANKIN INLET/WHALE COVE
Futsal and volleyball took centre stage in Kivalliq sports earlier this month.

The 2014 Rankin Inlet community open volleyball men's champion Blockbusters are Anthony Tootoo, Chad Graham, Colton Graham and Kyle Johnson, back row from left, and Chris Ussak, Andrew Simms and Hunter Nakoolak, front row from left, in Rankin in October of 2014. - photo courtesy of Kandace Kusugak

Whale Cove hosted the Under-15 boy's and girl's regional futsal championship from Oct. 17 to 19, while Rankin Inlet held an open volleyball tournament the same weekend.

In Rankin, the Blockbusters captured the men's crown, with Momma's Big Boys finishing second and Reese taking third.

On the female side of the ledger, Fusion took top spot, the Ice Bumpers second and the Rankin Rebels third.

Also competing were Diggers, the One Hit Wonders and Tweet Rankin.

Andrew Simms, of the men's champion Blockbusters, said the community event is more about having fun and participating than being uber-competitive, although the winning teams do get bragging rights.

He said the event gives those who don't often play volleyball a chance to take to the court, and also helps Laura Gauthier Memorial calibre players to keep their skills sharp.

"It was a blast for us to go out and keep pace with guys who play year-round, because we don't play that much," said Simms.

"We blocked a lot of shots during the tournament, so I would have to say that was our biggest strength.

"It stayed fun throughout, but things did get more competitive as the round robin went by, and there were refs and linesmen for the gold medal games, so the finals were legitimate.

"We were a little upset when the team we were to meet in the final (Momma's Big Boys) picked up a couple of pretty good players, but we came away with the win, so it didn't mean anything."

Rankin took the U-15 boy's futsal title with a thrilling 1-0 win over Whale Cove, while the hometown team captured the girl's crown.

Baker Lake and Coral Harbour also competed in the boy's division, while Coral, Chesterfield Inlet and Repulse Bay joined Whale and Rankin in the girl's division.

Futsal is the fastest-growing variation of soccer in the world, using a smaller ball with less bounce, five players per side and unlimited subs.

Rookie coach Kris Okpataujak led Rankin to the boy's title in his first tournament heading the bench.

And he couldn't have written a better script for the event.

Okpataujak said although the rules are a little different than soccer, especially having no crease, the players all seem to enjoy futsal.

He said the games had an exciting atmosphere, with it being Whale's first time to host the event.

"I did find it a little stressful, so now I know how the coaches felt when I was playing at that age," laughed Okpataujak. "I do like it though, so I'm going to stick with it. Having the final be a 1-0 game was pretty intense.

"We tied Whale Cove 2-2 in the round robin, so, between the two games, we only beat them 3-2."

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