For the second year in a row, team Ferda won the open division of the Nelson Indoor Soccer Winter Tournament.
In a repeat of last year’s final, Ferda took on D-Nial in the event wrap up match.
Ferda struck quickly and soared to a 3-0 lead by halftime. With D-Nial forced to take some offensive chances in the second half, Ferda took advantage of some defensive gaps and cruised to an 8-0 victory.
Ferda keeper Mitch Melanson earned the shutout in the victory.
“I think our team played really well together. We finally figured it all out by the end of the tournament,” said Melanson.
The Ferda squad started slow in the early rounds of the tournament, but managed to click in the final.
“By the end we were playing nice, scoring some goals and kept a clean sheet which is nice.”
Despite the lopsided score, action on the pitch was intense with neither side allowing the pace to slow down.
“It’s always a pretty intense game against these guys. We played them last year in the final as well and we won that one, but it was a way closer game,” said Melanson.
“I’d say the teams, altogether, were better this year. There were more teams that were higher quality. You definitely had to work to get into the final this year.”
In the Open Division semi-final, the PT Wagons defeated the Pawnee Rangers 9-8 in overtime to take third place.
In the Recreation Division, the defending champions Abacus squad defeated Blue Thunder 6-1 to take home the tournament title.
Abacus captain Pat Hodgson said his squad has been playing in the tournament for the past five years and this version was one of the best so far.
“It was tight every game, really competitive with all four teams, which hasn’t always been the case,” said Hodgson.
He also said the event was better organized than ever before.
“I think with [Nelson Youth Soccer] running the facility now, it’s a much better atmosphere here. It’s a bit more community orientated than it has been and the level of play in our division for sure has improved,” he said.
In the battle for third and fourth place in the Recreation Division, Focus defeated Red Dog 6-1.
