The territory’s U14 boys team ended their national tournament on a high yesterday.

The Yukon Strikers squad beat Newfoundland and Labrador’s second team 2-1 on goals by Joe Hanson and Ben Shier to cap their tournament in St. John’s with a huge victory.

The win propelled the team into 10th place in the standings with a 1-3-1 record, ahead of both the second N.L. host team and Prince Edward Island.

The team had an impressive run, following losses to Alberta 4-0 and Newfoundland and Labrador’s first team last Wednesday and Thursday.

On Saturday, Joseph Coyne finally got Yukon on the board in a 2-1 loss to New Brunswick.

Then on Sunday, Ashton Bryant struck to give his team a 1-0 lead over P.E.I., who eventually tied it en route to a 1-1 draw.

That set the stage for yesterday’s heroics over N.L.’s second team.

The win reveals a bright future for the young squad, which included underage members of the Yukon Junior Selects.

Also in St. John’s, the Yukon Strikers U14 girls played hard, but were ultimately unable to find the back of the net en route to a last-place finish.

Trudy Pike’s squad lost all five of their games: 11-0 to Quebec Wednesday, 7-0 to Manitoba Thursday, 4-0 to Saskatchewan Saturday, 6-0 to P.E.I. Sunday and 16-0 to British Columbia yesterday.

Both U14 coaches and their teams were in transit home from Newfoundland this morning and were unavailable to speak with the Star.

A total of three Yukon teams took part in the Sport Chek National Club Championships last week, including a U16 girls team competing in Surrey, B.C.

The Yukon Soccer Association’s head coach John MacPhail was there, assisting head coach Ashley Hill on the sidelines.

The U16 girls finished with a 0-4-1 record – also last.

The highlight of the tournament was a 1-1 draw against P.E.I. Saturday, said MacPhail.

Defender Bryn Peterson ensured Yukon wouldn’t be shut out, sending a last-minute shot over the P.E.I. keeper’s head to tie the game.

“About two minutes before that, she had shot from exactly the same place at the top of the 18, and she hit the crossbar,” MacPhail said. “That was a game that, quite honestly, was winnable.”

The team held P.E.I. off the board in the first half, hoping for some magic with a hard wind at their backs in the second.

But P.E.I. “snuck one in” on keeper Ava Cairns-Locke early in the second half, forcing the Yukoners to up the pressure.

“We decided: ‘Let’s go try and get one,’” said MacPhail. “We pushed Bryn up to the front, and she knocked one in from centre-mid. We gambled and it worked for us.”

The club lost all four of its other contests, however, 8-0 to Alberta Wednesday, 4-0 to N.L. Thursday, 4-0 to N.B. Sunday and 10-0 to B.C. yesterday.

The U16 Strikers headed south with just 13 players, 12 of whom were underage with an opportunity to return to nationals next year.

Shortly into nationals, Alizee Salesse was rendered unable to play due to concussion symptoms, meaning Yukon had only one sub for the remaining five games.

“We knew we were going to be in tough with a short bench, but none of the kids quit,” said MacPhail.

“They learned how to compete. There was a lot of sore legs, injuries and everything else, and they never even looked at the bench to come off.

“For me, that was my highlight.”

The backline of Peterson, Lara Herry-Saint Onge, Jewel Davies and Sam Ng played every minute of the tournament, displaying tremendous heart under immense pressure.

MacPhail said the girls were probably on the defence for 70 per cent of the tournament.

The final game versus B.C. was a microcosm of the tournament for Yukon, he added, as the Strikers – a club of 200 players – squared off against Mountain United FC, which draws from a talent pool of 14,000.

“That tells you the tale there,” MacPhail said. “David and Goliath.”

In other Yukon Strikers action last weekend, the U12 girls struck gold at the North Shore Girls Soccer Club’s annual Thanksgiving tournament.