Steal matches, force upsets.

No matter which way you put it, Squash Yukon players heading to the 2011 Canada Winter Games in Halifax, N.S., on Feb. 13, seem to understand completely what they're getting into when they face giants B.C., Ontario, Quebec and Alberta.

They also don't seem to care.

"That's part of the good thing,” boys player Stephen Grundmanis said. "We know that the best in Canada are there, and we know we're not exactly the best in Canada, but we can be there to have fun. And that's our primary goal there. We're going to compete the best we can, but we're going to have the most fun out of all the teams, because there's no expectations.”

Grundmanis' attitude heading into the Games was echoed by teammate Zain Syed.

"I think it's going to be a great learning experience,” said Syed, 16. "The best way to learn is to play people that are better than you. I'm going to learn so much, and it's going to be enjoyable.”

Team Yukon's squash contingent met for training with coach Khoon Chua, followed by a Canada Winter Games meeting at Better Bodies Gym last Saturday.

The experience started to become real for the young athletes when they received their Team Yukon gear.

Thirteen-year-old Tia Oster said picking up the gear added to the already palpable excitement she feels on competing in Halifax.

But there is also always cramming to be done before such a major competition.

"I feel like I can do a little better, I can worker harder and develop technique,” Oster said.

Not that the Yukoners get the same court time as players in the south.

The team got a rare chance to play against top-level players in the B.C. Junior Open at the end of January.

Mustafa Syed, 13, won third in the Boys U15 Open; Sophia Flather, 17, won the Girls U19 Bronze Consolation Category; and Grundmanis was runner-up in the Boys U17 Bronze Consolation Category.

The squash categories at the Canada Winter Games will be U19 and U17.

Seventeen-year-old Kelly Panchyshyn competed in the U19 category in B.C., the same category she'll play in Halifax.

"Playing at that level, you bring your own game up a lot,” Panchyshyn said. "When you're coming out of the Yukon, sometimes your goal isn't always to win but you have a lot of personal goals of what you want to do with your own game. We have to focus on that and not let the high caliber bring us down, get nervous, just focus on our own game.

"When you're playing out of the Yukon, there's not a huge number of people to play, so you know everybody's weakness and you know their strengths; when you go B.C., there's so many different people to play, you don't know how they play and you don't know what to expect. It's different playing people you've never played before.”

Shermaine Chua, 14, said she will try to fit in more training before the Games to deal with those variables.

"My game fluctuates too much, so I find if I can keep it steady, make sure that every shot is good, keep practising to make every shot perfect,” Chua said.

"Personally, when you hit the ball, you can kind of feel if it's right, the moment when your racket touches the ball, sometimes it just feels off.”

Khoon said that if his players play to their potential in two weeks, there's a chance the Yukon can steal some matches.

"It doesn't matter whether you win or lose – everybody wants to win – but the main thing is you want to perform well, know that you played well and shot your best,” he said. "You feel good when you play your best game, even if you lose. The main thing is that you try and you know that you play your best.”