the hall of fame and museum - Ontario Soccer Association

HERALD
The Soccer Hall of Fame and Museum
SPRING 2002
HALL OF FAME
INDUCTION AND BANQUET
MAY 4, 2002
wo prolific goal scorers, Dale
Mitchell from Vancouver and
Branko Segota from Toronto will
be honoured at the induction
ceremony to be held in Vaughan,
Ontario, on Saturday, May 4, 2002.
They will be joined by former star
players, Doug Greig, Mike Sweeney and
Fred Whittaker from British Columbia,
plus Randy Ragan from Alberta. Dickie
Stobbart from Vancouver and Doug
McMahon from Winnipeg, who ended
his career in Montreal, are being
inducted posthumously.
T
JOIN DALE MITCHELL AND HIS
FELLOW INDUCTEES AT OUR
THIRD ANNUAL BANQUET
ON MAY 4, 2002
TICKET DETAILS THIS PAGE
At the same time three stalwart
personalities will be inducted into the
Builder category, Dick Howard, Eric King,
and posthumously, Ray Morgan, all from
Ontario, although King previously lived
and played in Saskatoon.
The induction Banquet will be held at
the Toronto Board of Trade Golf and
Country Club in Woodbridge, Ontario.
Join us to honour the inductees, share
memories, enjoy a fine meal and
participate in a lively auction. Tickets
maybe purchased through Robyn
McComb of the OSA at (905) 264-9390
or email at [email protected]
OUR PREVIOUS INDUCTEES
Players 2000
Joe Kennaway, Geordie Campbell,
Dave Turner, Jack Cowan,
Erroll Crossan, Ken Pears,
Sam Lenarduzzi, BruceWilson,
Robert Iarusci and
Robert “Whitey” McDonald.
Builders 2000
David Forsyth, Horace Lyons,
Sam Davidson, William Simpson,
George Anderson, Don Petrie,
Dave Fryatt, Dr Tom Fried,
Lou Moro, Werner Winsemann
and Bill Stirling.
Players 2001
Roy Cairns, Jimmy Douglas,
Gerry Gray, Art Halliwell,
Art Hughes, Bobby Lenarduzzi,
Tino Lettieri and Carrie Serwetnyk.
Builders 2001
Graham Leggatt, John McMahon
and Tony Waiters.
Dale celebrates after scoring a goal during the
National team‘s “March to Mexico”.
Photo: Kent Kallberg
FROM THE CHAIR
PLEASE WELCOME “Herald”, a project the
Governors have long considered
essential to enable them to keep in
contact with the public and especially
with Inductees and their families, to
inform them of the discoveries and
continuing developments.
The “Herald” in hard copy is to be
published as an adjunct to items
posted on the internet—
www.thesoccerhalloffame.ca.
We hope you enjoy reading it and
that you will feel free to submit
articles from your soccer experiences
which you believe may be of interest.
Your comments and criticisms, too,
will always be welcome.
Thank you,
Bill Hoyle
THE HALL OF FAME AND MUSEUM
Display photo’s: Robert Lansdale Photography
The Soccer Hall of Fame was incorporated
in Ontario by The Ontario Soccer Association
in September 1997. Although this marked its
official beginning, the process of research and
investigation into the history of soccer in
Canada and Ontario specifically had flowered
under a previously constituted Heritage
Committee. This committee was created in the
mid 1990’s to push forward the concept of a
museum and Hall of Fame as well as provide
a framework for the scholarly interest in the
history of Soccer.
The Hall of Fame and Museum is managed
by a Board of Governors appointed by The
Ontario Soccer Association. It is our mandate
to collect, record, interpret and commemorate
Soccer’s story—in Canada generally and in
the Province of Ontario, in particular.
THE HALL OF FAME AND MUSEUM is located on
the ground floor of the Coffee Time Soccer
Centre, in Vaughan, Ontario.
The Museum is dedicated to preserve our
history through the collection of material and
artifacts related to the game of soccer in
Ontario and throughout Canada. These items
are used for research, to stock our museum
and enhance public interest.
THE MUSEUM IS GRATEFUL FOR DONATIONS OF
HISTORIC VALUE. ALL ARCHIVES AND ARTIFACTS ARE
FORMALLY ACKNOWLEDGED, PLACED IN SPECIAL STORAGE
AND DISPLAYED ON APPROPRIATE OCCASIONS.
The ribbon cutting
OUR PREVIOUS INDUCTIONS
MAY 4
HIS YEAR JOIN THE
CELEBRATION. SHARE
A TABLE WITH A
HALL OF FAMER…
T2002
Gerry Dobson our
MC and auctioneer.
THE FIRST INDUCTIONS
The first twenty-two Inductees…eleven players and eleven builders,
were installed at the inaugural Banquet on Saturday May 6, 2000.
John McMahon
and daughter
with Bill Hoyle.
Eight of the 2001 inductees at
the Vaughan Soccer Centre.
(REAR:Douglas, Hughes, Gray;
FRONT: Leggat, Cairns, Serwetnyk,
Lettieri, Lenarduzzi
A CANADIAN SOCCER PRIMER
ome form of soccer was being
played in Canada as early as the
1850s, but just when it was first
played here is hard to pinpoint.
We can safely say that the game—as we
know it today—began in 1876. In that
year, teams from Carlton Cricket Club
and the Toronto Lacrosse Club met on
Parliament Street in Toronto and played
according to The Football Association
rules drawn up in London in 1863.
Before long, this standard code was
adopted by all clubs playing in Canada.
The Dominion Football Association
was the first attempt to form a national
governing body of soccer outside of the
United Kingdom. Unfortunately its life
was short, lasting only from 1877 until
1881—a mere five years. The vacuum
was filled by two important regional
bodies: the Western Football Association,
formed in Berlin (now
Kitchener) in 1880 and
the Central Football
Association, formed
in Toronto in 1882.
David Forsyth,(left)
one of the most
important figures in
Canadian sports history, was the driving force
S
behind the establishment of both these
Associations. In the years that followed,
Forsyth led a Canadian tour to Britain in
1888 and helped form The Ontario
Soccer Association in 1901.
In 1904 the Galt Football Club,
representing Canada, won a gold medal
in the abbreviated Olympic soccer
competition in St. Louis. It was 63 years
before Canada again took part in the
Olympic competition.
Formation of Ontario‘s Provincial
Association led to the establishment of
similar organisations in other provinces.
As the game spread, the need for a
national governing body became more
evident and in 1912 The Canadian
Soccer Association was formed. With it
came a true national championship and
the proliferation of numerous leagues—
senior and junior—across the country.
In 1924 Canada’s national team toured
Australia and in 1927 they undertook a
similar tour to New Zealand.
Although the game survived the
tough economic times of the 1930’s the
game’s infrastructure suffered during the
second World War. For example, The
Ontario Soccer Association shut down in
1941 and was not re-established for a
period of ten years.
Before the war the game had been
essentially British. After the war, mass
immigration, especially from Europe, saw
people of many nationalities making up
the Canadian soccer mosaic.
Canada entered the World Cup for the
first time in 1957, (the first national team
in 30 years) and in 1986 reached the
finals in Mexico. The national team has
competed in all the Olympic qualifying
competitions since 1967 and hosted the
finals in 1976. In 1984, Canada reached
the quarter finals before losing to Brazil
on penalty kicks.
In 1968, the North American Soccer
League was founded. This resulted in the
formation of professional teams in
Toronto and Vancouver on a level not
attempted before. Later on, Montreal,
Edmonton and Calgary entered the
NASL. In 1976, Toronto won the NASL
championship followed by Vancouver in
1979. The NASL ran 16 years, offering
many talented Canadians an important
opportunity to play truly professional
soccer for the first time.
Following the demise of the NASL in
1985, the first coast to coast Canadian
Soccer League was formed in 1987. Due
to economic problems it folded in 1992.
Nonetheless, “grass-roots” soccer thrived
and today soccer is the number one
participation sport in the country. And
with the coming of the new century
comes hope for a new tomorrow as
Canada, much to everyone's surprise,
won the Gold Cup, the championship of
the Football Confederation.
Canada’s World Cup team, 1986