GREAT (SOCCER) BALLS OF FIRE

It was a hot, hazy, humid Canada Day weekend. Forget about sizzling while sitting on the deck or at the beach. Try playing soccer. While temperatures here hovered in the low 30s, they were even higher in the Toronto area, site of the 36th annual Robbie International Soccer Tournament on the July 1 weekend. Local Civic teams ventured to Scarborough -- just east of Toronto -- for a tournament that featured hundreds of teams in various age groups, including ones from as far away as Ireland. The Pino's under-19 girls battled the odds from the outset, bringing only 13 players south for the elite tourney. Factor in the heat and humidity along with several injuries and Pino's head coach Joe Ceglie said he had but seven healthy bodies for his team's third game of the long weekend, a 5-0 loss to Pickering. The Sault team didn't score a goal all weekend long, also falling 3-0 to the Mississauga Falcons after opening the draw with a 0-0 tie against Barrie. "We were dropping like flies," said Ceglie. "We were short on players to begin with and then we had players who got hurt or couldn't go on because of the humidity. Meanwhile, the Steel Speed under-14 boys were also in Scarborough for the Robbie tournament. The locals tied the London Storm 2-2 on goals by Matt Dias and Jeff Coccimiglio, and Robert Paradiso scored the only goal in a 1-1 tie with the Rochester Americans, before ending play with a 5-0 loss to Etobicoke. Over at St. Thomas, the Sault Wolf Pack under-16 boys played well in an invitational tournament in that southwestern Ontario city but just couldn't find the net, according to coach Paul Montanini. The Wolf Pack lost 2-1 to both London Curinga and St. Thomas before battling West Middlesex to a 1-1 tie. Chris Montantini had two of the Wolf Pack goals while Joey Paciocco had the other.