A special community in Tasiilaq: Futsal gives confidence

The halo shows 2-3 in favor of the away team. The ATA U15 boys from Tasiilaq are behind. Not only are they behind, but so are arch-rivals TM-62 from Kulusuk.

Both teams have traveled the long way across the ice to Nuuk to participate in the U15 futsal tournament Polar El Cup, and are now in direct competition for the bronze medals.

The halo shows 2-3 in favor of the away team. The ATA U15 boys from Tasiilaq are behind. Not only are they behind, but so are arch-rivals TM-62 from Kulusuk.

Both teams have traveled the long way across the ice to Nuuk to participate in the U15 futsal tournament Polar El Cup, and are now in direct competition for the bronze medals.

With 3 minutes left, Eigel Ignatiussen suddenly appears and equalizes to 3-3 assisted by 11-year-old Eli Kûko. Actually, Eli Kûko is far too young to participate in an U15 tournament, but he is also the image in a story about the special nature of the U15 futsal team in Tasiilaq. We will return to how the bronze match ends.

Futsal as a preventive measure

Two months before the dramatic bronze match in Nuuk, we are on the sidelines in Tasiilaq for one of the team's 3 weekly training sessions. Several Tasiilaq citizens have mentioned the futsal environment when we have asked them what important stories the city hides, so now we sit here and watch the training, which is managed by 42-year-old Hans Poul Andersen.

Hobbled after an injury for company football the week before, he directs the young boys and girls around the pitch. The futsal environment creates some important frameworks for children and young people in Tasiilaq, says Hans Poul Andersen.

- The hall is one of the few meeting places in Tasiilaq, and here children and young people make new friendships of all ages. We have everything from 10-year-olds up to 15-year-olds with us for training and both girls and boys. They learn to play with each other.

And the unity is clearly felt.

- When I score, I feel that the others are happy, says 14-year-old Ingemann Uitsatikitseq.

Hans Poul Andersen directs the players down to the goal line, where they must lie on their stomachs. At his command they stand up and sprint down to the opposite end and back again. After a few trips they are out of breath and seem tired. A completely deliberate tactic on the coach's part.

- We try as much as possible to make them tired and train them hard every time. We have noticed that when they have trained hard and intensively, their focus is on relaxing and enjoying themselves with their friends instead of doing stupid things, says Hans Poul Andersen and continues.

- It's an age when they start trying things like smoking and partying. So the preventive effort is important, and is one of the things we as an association focus on.

Travel gives confidence

The atmosphere is intense in the Inussivik hall in Nuuk. It's still 3-3 in the arch-enemy clash between Kulusuk and Tasiilaq. There are two minutes left in the game, and tackles are going through, which were about life and death.

Suddenly Tasiilaq's youngest player Eli Kûko reappears. With the coolness of an experienced striker, he brings ATA U15 ahead 4-3 to great cheers among both the coaching staff and fellow players. Soon after, the match was blown. Redemption.

A week's intense visit to the big city has its footballing happy ending. But even though the trip to Nuuk in a footballing sense is thus a success, and the goal of medals has been achieved, there are also other things in focus on the trip to Nuuk, says Hans Poul Andersen.

- It is a huge experience for the boys to come to Nuuk. They have made a lot of friends. We have been to the swimming pool several times, and then they have been up to watch their idols play for B67 and Young Guns. They have eaten in restaurants, which several of them have missed for a very long time. And then they have visited sports shops, which is otherwise a rarity, says the coach.

This was exactly what the boys were looking forward to when we met them in Tasiilaq two months ago.

What is the funnest thing about going to Nuuk?

- Football, the matches and the shops, replies 14-year-old Keld Sørensen without hesitation.

In addition to the benefits of being in Nuuk, Hans Poul Andersen also experiences a personal development in the boys when they are matched with other teams and visit new places.

- On a personal level, we can see that the boys have gained confidence from being on this trip to Nuuk. They are not used to playing in halls with many spectators, and for some it has been very borderline-crossing. Some of our players were nauseous and threw up before the semi-final because they were so nervous, but during the bronze medal match they were just ready because they had played several matches with the crowd shouting and screaming.

Expensive tickets

The trip to Nuuk has therefore been a success. But it was also only a step on the way. The big goal of the season is the GM at the beginning of March, which this year will be played in Ilulissat. But even if spirits are high and the boys are definitely not full after the trip to Nuuk, it's not just like going to GM.

- The biggest challenge is the expensive tickets when we go to GM. We have an association that is very supportive, but it is much cheaper to travel between the cities on the west coast. This is one of the biggest challenges we face. Hopefully we can scrape together enough money from sponsors and with the help of the municipality, says Hans Poul Andersen.