Saskatchewan squad dominates Texas tournament
The Saskatchewan Selects have quickly mastered the fine art of four-down football.
Selects Football won its second consecutive gold medal in the under-10 division Sunday at the International Pigskin Classic youth football tournament in San Antonio, Texas.
Even more impressively, the 2020 Selects did not allow a point, outscoring the opposition 62-0 over three games.
In the final, the 38-player Saskatchewan squad blanked the Alamo City Red Raiders 18-0. Noah Finkeldey led the Selects’ defence with two sacks, a forced fumble and a pass knockdown. Jamie Robertson added an interception. Hudson Belsher and Adam Muntain, both of whom saw action at quarterback, operated an efficient offence.
“Winning it last year was a great achievement, because the under-10 program had never won a tournament before,” Selects head coach Colin Belsher said Thursday. “Going into this year, expectations were considerably higher because of the success we had the previous year.”
In both years, the Selects returned the tournament’s opening kickoff for a touchdown. Rogan Pipko of White City had the long-distance return in 2019. On Saturday, Keaton Belsher went the distance.
“That kind of set our feet in motion,” Colin Belsher said of his son’s 68-yard scoring sprint, “and we never looked back from there.”
En route to the championship game, the Selects shut out the San Antonio Ducks (24-0) and Houston Cougars (20-0).
The benefits of the Texas trip extended beyond excellence on the field.
“Something we talked to the kids about was to enjoy the moment and live in the moment,” said Belsher, who is also the head coach of the Moose Jaw Central Cyclones high school football team.
“It was something special to be able to take it in together and represent not only our province, but also our country. For kids of that age to be able to experience something like that is pretty unique.”
The team began practising in November, holding two-day sessions every second weekend at the Yara Centre in Moose Jaw.
The training regimen applied to five Selects Football teams — under-10, under-12, under-13, under-14 and varsity (Grades 10 to 12) — that travelled to Texas. The under-14 and varsity squads advanced to the finals.
The Saskatchewan delegation consisted of 184 players and 36 coaches, plus medical, training and administration staff.
When family members and friends were factored into the equation, more than 1,000 Saskatchewanians experienced the International Pigskin Classic in some capacity.
Selects Football was founded eight years ago, according to Zeljko Stefanovic, who, along with Steve Sombach, is the program’s co-director.
The overall emphasis is on skill development and ensuring that the players are able to work with top-notch coaches.
“We bring in coaches who have a wealth of knowledge at every position and that’s what they concentrate on,” said Stefanovic, whose wife Deb has also been closely involved with the Selects program since its inception.
“You really notice the skill development in the kids when they go back to fall season and start playing with and against their peers.”