Yellowknife soccer players see Atlantic Ocean for first time during N.B. tournament

Young soccer players from the Northwest Territories had the chance to dip their toes in the Atlantic Ocean for the first time after travelling to New Brunswick for a tournament.

The YK Galaxy team came from Yellowknife to compete at the under-17 nationals in Moncton, and the 16 players were eager to make a special stop at Parlee Beach on the Northumberland Strait. 

The Yellowknife soccer players faced a season of adversity after wildfires disrupted their training.

They were forced to practise indoors because of heavy smoke and eventually were evacuated from the city entirely.

Adam Clinton, a 16-year-old player, said the team had few proper practices before the tournament.

"We were forced to either train inside or just cancel sessions, and it was tough because we don't really have indoor facilities that we can really train on," he said.

"It's like a hockey rink with Velcro on it, so it's really tough to learn how to play the game properly."

Yellowknife also lacks a full-size, regulation soccer field, so the team is used to playing on a much smaller pitch.

At the Moncton tournament, they've competed on full-size artificial turf fields, which make the ball roll faster.

Graeme Clinton, the team's head coach, said the impact of the wildfires was a struggle, but N.W.T. doesn't have the training centres needed to compete at a national level.

"Obviously, it's a cold climate where we're from," he said. "Once you get to this level, we're behind on just being able to play on a proper surface on a full field."

They've played against Prince Edward Island and British Columbia in their first two games. The tournament wraps up this weekend.

At Parlee Beach in Shediac, the team kicked around soccer balls and collected small vials of sand to bring home as a souvenir of their time in New Brunswick.

Ryan Peters, the team's manager, said it was the first time many of the players had visited the Maritimes.