Ontario

Softball for kids began in Cobourg in 1958 when Cobourg Branch 133 Royal Canadian Legion stepped up as a sponsor. That support continues to this day providing boys and girls an opportunity to play and have fun with this wonderful game. That first year just over 60 boys participated spread over 4 teams, all in the squirt division (kids under 10 years).

The league organizer and head of the squirt division was Jack Bevan. Among the coaches were long-time star softball players Burke Clarey and Dick Turpin. At the end of the season the Legion hosted a season-ending banquet for the players and coaches. That tradition continued for many years.

In 1959 some 125 youth signed up to play squirt and peewee softball. In 1960, with the age limit raised, the number registered had risen to 380. It was decided that a formal executive was needed. Lionel Gutteridge was elected President. He would hold that position for 7 years.

In 1961 it was decided that all players and coaches would assemble at the Legion on Orr Street and then parade down King Street to Victoria Park. Once there, opening ceremonies were held. The parade became a tradition and in 1978 all the other summer sports teams were invited to join the parade. It became Cobourg’s “All Summer Sports Parade”.

By the summer of 1962 the Legion Minor softball Program had grown to 500 youth participating in the league. And in 1964 the number of youth participating would be 560. That would be the highest number of participants the league would reach.

In 1966 Lionel Gutteridge who had served as President for 7 years stepped down. Cedric Smith became President. He was another war veteran and a long-time supporter of Legion softball. In 1968 Bill Robbins, who had been the PeeWee Governor, took over as President. He declined to run in 1969 and Lionel Gutteridge was re-elected as President. Since then many well-known softball and Legion enthusiasts have held the prestigious role of President of Cobourg Legion Minor Softball.

As the organization grew, it became more aware of what it takes to keep an organization of this kind strong and healthy. Part of their mission was to give structure and direction to future Executive Boards. To that end, the 1978-79 Cobourg Legion Minor Softball executive created and approved a constitution. It would later become the blueprint that Napanee used when they started their minor softball program.

On the diamond, Legion Rep Teams have competed in many Ontario Amateur Softball Association Provincial Playdowns, and brought home several championships. Individually, Marty Kernaghan has to be the most successful alumnus. He has been recognized as one of the best fastball players in the world and was inducted into the International Softball Association’s Hall of Fame and the Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame.

In recent years, the first-class Legion Fields Park was developed and has become the home of Cobourg softball. One of its three diamonds is named after Jack Bevan, who started it all in 1958.

From 1958 until the present day, the Cobourg Legion has faithfully sponsored youth softball in our town.

Thank you Branch 133 and all of your volunteers.

Updated August 2020

From T-shirts to Champions

High School Rugby was becoming popular in rural Ontario so teachers Rob Majdell and Ray Heffernan thought they would start a rugby program in the spring of 1993. St Mary’s Catholic Secondary School (SMCSS) was still a small school of about 400 students. The expectation was that 20 firm participants would be needed at every practice, at every lunch, to continue with this program.

The other local high schools with their bigger population bases (around 800 students each) had already established rugby programs. For the betterment of rugby they agreed to play St. Mary’s new team in exhibition play for the first 3 years. These teams included Trinity College School, Cobourg East and Cobourg West.

During the first 2 years, players wore only t-shirts as jerseys. In year three, after the team became established, the school ordered and bought keeper jerseys. The fellas thought they were too nice to wear for games, so they decided to keep wearing t-shirts. The team began playing in the Kawartha league in 1996 and as they say, the rest is history.

In 2000, Greg Conway joined the coaching staff.  The team rebranded itself as the Thunder RFC and began to enjoy more success on the pitch – more coaches meant more skill development for the players.  By 2003, the team had its first player selected to Team Ontario – Sandy Sweet.  His skill and attitude started to turn the tide towards a more competitive approach by the players. 

The coaching staff had also added Drew Quemby to the fold.  This was massive as Rob Majdell had moved on to become a Vice-Principal at another school.  The team began showing potential, competing with or even defeating powerhouse teams from Lindsay and Peterborough – teams that only 2 or 3 years prior had been winning by 70 points!

In 2004, the team embarked on the first of many Rugby Tours.  The island of Bermuda was chosen.  The destination, along with amazing experiences like playing against the Bermuda U-18 team on the national pitch, drew even more athletes out to the team.  Touring became a mainstay and was the turning point in prying male athletes away from the mindset of only playing hockey.  The team now prides itself as a touring side, having embarked on 13 ruby tours to places like England, Hawaii, Barbados, Scotland, France, New York City and even the Rugby World Cup in 2015.  The opportunity to go on these tours has attracted many more athletes to try the sport, which has resulted in a very competitive side moving forward.

St. Mary’s has held the Saxon Cup (Northumberland championship) since 2005, after Port Hope won the inaugural competition in 2004.  The Junior Boys are the sole winner of the Junior Saxon Cup, winning it every year it has existed.  The Thunder take the local rivalry very seriously – the only loss by either the Junior or Senior team since 2002 to a local team came in the Saxons Cup final in 2004 to Port Hope.  Keeping the streak alive is taken to heart!

In 2005, the team qualified for its first COSSA Championship after making its first Kawartha Final in team history.  2010 saw the team win its first COSSA medal – a Silver – after toppling powerhouse Centennial from Belleville in the Semis.  They would lose a very tight COSSA final by 2 points and miss out on OFSAA.

In 2011, the Junior Boys won the team’s first Kawartha Championship.  2012 saw the team compete in its first OFSAA Championship – as host school.  Though ranked in the bottom half of the 16-team tournament draw, the team finished 5th overall!  That success was further demonstrated the following year, as the Senior Boys won their first Kawartha title in 2013.

The team had entered a new competitive phase – regularly competing for Kawartha titles and qualifying for COSSA.  They also had athletes not only competing for Ontario, but also being selected to represent Canada.  Brandon McLeod, or “The Missile”, played internationally on the Canada Sevens development team 6 times.  Owain Ruttan represented Canada for their U-18 and U-20 teams a total of 11 times, scoring two tries, including one against Wales!

2016 saw a Junior Team unlike any before at SMCSS.  They captured the Kawartha title and the team’s first COSSA Gold.  That same team won COSSA Gold again at Senior in 2017, 2018 and 2019.  During that run, they produced 4 more Canadian players – Josh Barss, Keagan Read, Adam McNee and Mason Flesch.
 
In 2018, the Senior Boys team reached new heights 25 years after the first team started play.  They toured Hawaii and defeated the powerful Kahuku – Hawaii state champions.  They returned home and won the Kawartha Championship as well as the COSSA Championship.  All that remained was OFSAA.
They entered as the #1 seed and dominated the tournament leading up to the final.  In a hard fought Gold Medal game, the Thunder prevailed 26-19 to capture its first Provincial Championship.  They outscored all opponents at OFSAA by a margin of 200-24 and finished the season a perfect 16-0.  

The 2019 team was not to be outdone.  That team won Kawartha and COSSA again, and went on the win the OFSAA Championship, becoming only the third school to ever repeat as Champion.  History was made however as St. Mary’s won the 2019 title game 40-0, which is the largest margin of victory in any OFSAA Boys Rugby Championship Final.

It has taken almost 30 years to reach the pinnacle.  They began in t-shirts and running shoes, losing by 70 or 80 points.  They have since seen the world and risen to the top, with back-to-back OFSAA Gold.  The coaching staff has grown as well – additions Tim Linehan, Adam Janssen, Shawn Carmichael have all played a part in the team’s growth and success.  As a coaching staff, we are excited to see where the team can go next!!!

Greg Conway - Head Coach, Thunder RFC

Updated August 2020

Emerging in 2014 as the newly amalgamated public high school in Cobourg, Cobourg Collegiate Institute (CCI) has brought together the rich athletic histories of the former Cobourg District Collegiate Institute East and Cobourg District Collegiate Institute West schools.  Moving from medium sized “AA” schools (between 500-900 students) to a larger AAA school (1150 students in 2020), C.C.I. offers its students an extensive selection of sports teams, with the continued pride and success that was enjoyed by the former East and West schools.  

Since its inaugural year in September of 2014, C.C.I. sports teams have won many Kawartha (local) and COSSA (regional) championships.  This has led to many trips to the Ontario Federation of Schools Athletic Association (OFSAA) provincial championships with its sports teams, including Girls Hockey, Boys Hockey, Boys Volleyball, Girls Volleyball, Boys Soccer, Girls Soccer, Wrestling, Cross Country, Badminton, Tennis, Track and Field, and Swimming.  

A trip to CCI’s Dillon-Lawless Gym (named after renowned local high school physical education teachers Del Dillon and Jerry Lawless) will also allow you to see the growing number of team and individual OFSAA honours, including medal performances for finishing in the top 4 in the province.  

As of the winter of 2020, OFSAA Honours include the Girls Hockey team with a 4th place finish, and the following individuals: Wrestlers-Amara Hill (4th place), and Jayden Sparks (3rd place), Track Athletes- Cameron Bruce (4th place, 300m Hurdles) and Kate Current (2nd place, 800m), and Swimmers- Lauren Burleigh (2x 1st place 50m Para Backstroke, and 1st place 100m Para backstroke), and Carlie Bilodeau (1st place, JR 50m Backstroke).  Some of these athletes, and many others have enjoyed success at the college and university sports level following their years of competing for Cobourg Collegiate Institute.

In addition to an impressive C.C.I. OFSAA presence to date, they also consistently have demonstrated exceptional character through sport. Two teams were awarded with the OFSAA Sportsmanship Award during their OFSAA debuts – the varsity girls’ hockey team in 2016, in Stratford, and the senior boys’ soccer team in 2018, in Thunder Bay.

Beyond the successes of sports teams to date, dedicated coaches have planned a variety of trips to enrich the students’ experiences, and to provide lasting memories.  One of the highlighted trips include rugby teams taking part in tournaments in New York City and New Brunswick (Rothesay Netherwood Private School in Rothesay, NB).  As well, basketball teams have annually made trips to prestigious American Colleges and Universities to play games, tour the facilities and watch high-level teams train and compete.  Recent trips have been to Pennsylvania, Indiana, Michigan, Washington D.C., Virginia, West Virginia and New Hampshire.

Building on the excellent athletic facilities on the C.D.C.I. East school site, one major facility upgrade enjoyed by C.C.I. students was the installation of a 6-lane rubberized track.  This has attracted athletes and visitors, including the likes of Canadian Olympic medalist Andre De Grasse, for a training session before his trip to the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.  Highlights on our track to date include running our school’s annual Relay for Life event, and a Board-Wide “Inclusive Track and Field Day”.  

The Inclusive track and field day is open to all Learning and Life Skills high school students around the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board, and includes running, wheel-chair and field events, along with a barbeque lunch.  We are also happy to be able to accommodate local and regional elementary schools, housing our future C.C.I. athletes, who need a venue to run their annual track and field meets.

C.C.I has also been a support to many community members and visiting schools looking to access our gym facilities.  This has included a close relationship with the Lakeshore Minor Basketball Association, who has been a partner in helping us to invest in new glass backboards, adjustable nets and a padded score table.  The local Badminton Club, along with the Northumberland Sports Council, used our gym for the Ontario 55+ Winter Games in 2017, which was a unique opportunity to open our school to athletes from all age groups.  Our gyms are rented most nights, and weekends, throughout the year to service local sports clubs for training and competition, including volleyball, badminton, basketball, soccer, rugby, softball, baseball, lacrosse, rowing and more.

As Cobourg Collegiate Institute continues to grow its history, they are proud to be an important and vital part of the Cobourg community.

Updated August 2020

The Cobourg Sentinel-Star, Thursday, October 8,1953

In the following historical reference to the inception of a National Agricultural Show in England, Alfred Hall, Roseneath, Seaton, Cumberland, England, secretary of The World Championship Plowing Organization, tells of the growth of the World Plan development in agricultural organization, and how the First World Contest has come to Cobourg. Ontario.

"J. D. Thomas," writes Mr. Hall, "of the Ontario Plowman's Association flew to Scotland on special mission to invite the Provisional Board of what was to be known as The World Championship Plowing Organization to hold the First World Match in Canada.”

In the early 19th century, the Lord of the Manor of Workington, in Cumberland, England, a man called John Christian Curwen founded the original Workington Agricultural Society. Curwen was a farmer and a member of the British Parliament for 40 years. He carried out many experiments with crops, cultivation, machinery inventions, the fattening of livestock, and other farm practices.

The name of Curwen was adopted on his marriage to the heiress to the estates of the Curwen family. He was of the same family as the famous Mr. Fletcher Christian, the Chief Officer of the "Bounty" who led the mutiny against the notorious, Captain Bligh. Having set Bligh adrift Fletcher Christian and his mutineers settled on Pitcairn Island and there founded a community some members of which occasionally return to the land of their forefathers.  

It was John Christian Curwen and a farmer colleague, the famous Mr. Bates, of Northumberland, who together first suggested to the Secretary of the then Board of Agriculture the idea of holding a National Agricultural Show. Thus was started the "Royal Show of England" as we know it today.

Curwen's Workington Agricultural Society had a branch in the Isle of Man and another at Wigton in Cumberland. For some reason, however, the Workington Show did not survive after Curwen’s day. In 1945 George T. Weir suggested to Alfred Hall and to James Lancaster who was at that time Mayor of Workington, and a few other enthusiasts the idea of forming another Workington Agricultural Society. This was one. James Lancaster was made chairman, Alfred Hall, General Sec., and George Weir Treasurer, and a three-day Agricultural Show and Industry Exhibition was held on Curwen (?), Workington.

In 1946, Alfred Hall suggested the holding of a Ploughing Match, to which the Society agreed. He learned that a champion team of Ontario ploughmen were to pay a visit to the United Kingdom, the trip being their prize for having won the Ontario Championships. There were to be four of them and a team manager. Their sponsors were the Imperial Oil Company of Canada, Ltd., and the Salada Tea Company.

An invitation was at once extended to them through the Ontario Plowmen's Association to compete in the Workington Ploughing Match. The invitation was accepted but when the time for the Match came there was severe frost and after two postponements the event had to be cancelled. But a banquet was held; the visitors were taken on a tour of the Lake District and the invitation was extended to cover another team of Canadians for the next year.

After that each year's Ontario champions came annually to plough at Workington Ploughing Match. Later came competitors from Northern Ireland and from Sweden. And more and more competitors came from further and further afield in Britain, too.

In 1950 the Workington Agricultural Society's Ploughing Match was held at Penrith, in Cumberland, with the assistance of members of Skelton. Plough Match was growing too big to remain a local affair.

The Ontario Plowmen's Association had invited the Workington Society to send a team to compete in Canada; a further invitation came from the State River Valley Plowmen's Association in Canada, and promises of hospitality were forthcoming through the Canadian Vice-president of the Workington Agricultural Society, L. A. Greene, of Port Arthur, Ontario, who began life in Workington.

In the winter of 1951 Ontario's team of champion ploughmen planted Canadian Maple trees round the War Memorial in the Vulcan Park, Workington, as a token of thanks and friendship for the Cumberland hospitality enjoyed at successive parties of Canadian ploughmen.

By now John A. Carroll, who was then Secretary of the Ontario Plowmens' Association (now Assistant Deputy Minister of Agriculture for the Province of Ontario and President of WCPO) were closely liaising on the idea of getting as many countries as possible represented at an international ploughing contest. By various means and in particular, through the good offices of Ford Motor Co. Ltd., Alfred Hall established liaison with interested parties in several European countries.

Lack of finance made it impossible to accept the Canadian invitations, but it was felt that, in time, it might be possible for British plowmen to be sent to European countries in exchange for ploughmen from those countries having visited Britain. The idea of this was discussed by Alfred Hall and Gunnar Hubinette, of Sweden, at Workington in November of 1950. They decided to work; together in the job of interesting other European countries and securing their co-operation.

One of the first steps towards this end was the calling of a meeting by the Workington Agricultural Society in collaboration with the Northern Ireland Ploughing Association in Belfast at the time of the Northern Ireland Ploughing Match in February 1951. It was felt that if international matches were to be successful there was a need to draft rules and agree styles of ploughing, common to all for competition purposes.

This meeting was attended by a representative gathering from the British Isles and from a number of European countries. There was a frank exchange of views and opinions and the outcome was the undoubted desire for the formation of a fully representative international authority for the conduct of international ploughing matches.

Since there was no national society in Great Britain, although Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland (Erie) each had their own national organizations to which local societies were and, of course, still are affiliated, the Workington Society decided to invite all the local ploughing societies in Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) to attend a meeting to consider the formation of a British Ploughing Association.

Because there was no collected record of ploughing societies this entailed considerable research and this job of finding the addresses of secretaries was carried out in the main by George Merryweather of the Goodyear Tyre Company of Great Britain Ltd. Mr. Merryweather and Mr. Frank Ellis, of Essa, were two of the earliest associates of the Workington Agricultural Society in connection with the developments in competition ploughing.

The meeting thus convened by the Workington Society was held in Leeds, Yorkshire, on the 17th of May, 1951, when about 150 delegates attended and were entertained to a buffet lunch by the Esso Petroleum Company Ltd., before commencing business. By a unanimous vote the British Ploughing Association was formed and arrangements were made for the first British National Ploughing Match to be held at Newton Kyme, near Tadcaster, Yorkshire, England.

With a national authority such as the BPA, Great Britain was in a position to co-operate on representative national basis with similar organizations in other countries for the purpose of establishing a world ploughing organization and so provide a World-wide incentive to encourage better ploughing for better crops for more food everywhere.

In Britain most local ploughing match societies, some of which have been existence for well over 100 years, are affiliated to the British Ploughing Association. The British National Match is now held annually at a different place in either England, Scotland or Wales on the second Wednesday of November each year.

In February, 1952, the British Ploughing Association convened an International Conference which, at the kind invitation of the then Mayor of Workington (?) attended by the BPA Council and representatives of ploughing organizations in Canada, Sweden and Holland when it was agreed to form a Provisional Governing Board for the organization of a World Ploughing Match and when international rules were drafted for further consideration by each delegate's respective organization. J. J. Bogin, Sec. of N.P.A. of Ireland sent the encouraging news that the N.P.A. would donate to the new organization a trophy to be known as the "Irish Shield".

In October and September of that year. Alfred Hall, who was now Secretary of the British Ploughing Association and also of the Provisional board and owing to the weight of the new duties had relinquished the Secretaryship of the Workington Society, attended specially convened meetings held in Sweden and in Norway to further discuss the promotion of a World Ploughing Contest and to consider the standardizing of international rules and ploughing styles which would be fair to all participants in such a contest. These conferences were also, attended by delegates from Finland, Denmark and Germany as well as from Norway and Sweden.

To all these Alfred Hall extended, on behalf of the British Ploughing Association, an invitation to send either competitors or observers to the second British National Match which was to be held at Stirling, Scotland, in November. It was agreed that the semi-digger class would be held according to the draft international rules as an experiment and that afterwards their practical application would be considered in the light of experience thus gained.

The BPA Match at Stirling was, as a result, attended by competitors and official observers from Canada, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Germany and the Republic of Ireland. Not only was a final code of rules and a style of ploughing decided upon for the first World Championship Ploughing Contest but, thanks to the generosity of Canada, it became possible to arrange for the first World Contest to be held at Cobourg, Ontario, in October, 1953.

J. D. Thomas, of the Ontario Plowmen's Association flew to Scotland on special mission to invite the Provincial Board of (?) Organization to hold the first World Match in Canada. Mr. Thomas said that Canada would be happy to be host and would cover all the expenses of a party of two national champions and a team manager from each country whilst they were in Canada, and as many countries as could enter were welcome.

This kind offer was gratefully accepted and delegates returned to their respective countries intent on organizing first local or area ploughing matches and then a national match from which to select competitors to go to Canada. They were also intent upon trying to find enough money to pay the fares to Canada, too.

In March of this year Secretary Alfred Hall received an urgent call to fly to Canada at once to make arrangements for the World Contest which is to be held in conjunction with the Ontario Plowmen's Association. Whilst there he had a busy week of meetings and conferences and was able to accept on behalf of the WCPO the "Esso World-Plan". Some time earlier representatives of the world-wide Esso oil organization had met in Germany and one of the items they discussed was the sponsorship of competitors to the World Ploughing Contest.

Esso affiliates in certain countries were prepared to offer as a national championship prize the free trip to Canada. This sponsorship would cover two competitors and a manager. Also, all the affiliates would subscribe towards a premier trophy to be known as the "Esso" Golden Plough, to be symbolic of world supremacy in championship ploughing and to be competed for annually.

Thus a big problem of finance was solved and now twelve countries will be represented in the World Contest at Cobourg.

Since the BPA Match held in Scotland great developments have taken place in several countries.

Reviewed August 2020

With entries from 11 countries the Cobourg International match is shaping up into the greatest yet
By: F.L. Kyte  - Family Herald and Weekly Star, September 10, 1953

IN ADDITION to close to 600 entries of plowmen, and boys and girls from Ontario, plus a few contestants from other provinces, teams of two expert plowmen from 10 other countries will compete this year at the International Plowing Match and Farm Machinery Demonstration. The Match is being held not far from Cobourg, Ont. and the dates are Oct. 6 to 9 inclusive.

After several years of discussion with United Kingdom and Scandinavian plowing authorities a World Championship Plowing Organization was formed last year in England, and the first truly International match was awarded to Canada, to be held at the same time as our regular International event. President of the World Organization is J. A. Carroll, ass't Deputy Minister of Agriculture for Ontario, and a former secretary manager of the big Ontario Plowmen's Ass'n Matches.

Eight European Teams
According to present Information Great Britain will be represented by two competitors plus a manager (the rules also suggest that a coach who could act as a Judge accompany each team); Northern Ireland and Republic of Eire will each have two contestants plus managers; Norway, two competitors plus a manager and the father of one of them, who is making the trip just to see his son compete; Sweden, Finland and Holland, two competitors plus managers; Germany, two competitors and, a manager.

On June 1st Germany held its first federal match when 36 county and state finalists competed to declare their national champions, who will be coming to Canada. Denmark and the U.S. are also sending a team of two plus a manager.

In charge of the overseas delegation will be S. G. Powell, chairman of the British Plowing Ass’n. and Alfred Hall, Roseneath, Seaton, Workington, Cumberland, Eng. The group is expected to arrive in Canada Sept. 30. and will make a brief tour of Eastern Ontario before reaching Cobourg.

The big Match is being held this year at the Durham-Northumberland, Counties’ Home and adjoining farms near Highway No. 2 east of Port Hope, where plenty of good land is available. Some 33 acres will be needed for 'Tented City" for 175 exhibitors have taken space, as well as 30 food concessionaires. As usual the Family Herald and Weekly Star will have its big tent near Headquarters, and will be printing day-by-day programs giving the names and classes of all the contestants, as well as the previous day’s winners.

In order to select the two Canadians for the World Contest, it was found necessary to stage a championship class for Ontario plowmen on Tuesday, the opening day. This will be followed by the Canadian class on Wednesday in which all provinces may enter one or two of their top plowmen. The winners will then move on to the World Match on Thursday and Friday.

There are many other highlights this year which should be mentioned. Plowmen, in particular, will be interested in the contour competition to be held Wednesday and Thursday; the top prize each day is $75.00 in cash. Similar to past years the Esso champions class sponsored by Imperial Oil Limited will be a prominent feature of the third day.

For Junior plowmen including those attending secondary schools, Canada Packers Limited will provide a trophy and a gold watch to each team member in a secondary school competition being held on Thursday. British American Oil Company is sponsoring a class in inter-county competition for Junior farmers. This will be held on the last day of the Match.

Many of our younger farmers are quite expert in repairing farm machinery and equipment and they will have an opportunity of showing their skill by entering the welding competition scheduled to take place on each of the four days. This feature will be under the direction of Professor James Scott, O.A.C. (Ontario Agricultural College) Guelph.

Local competitors, those from Northumberland, Durham and adjoining counties will not be required to face outside competition on the first day of the Match. A number of classes with substantial prize money have been arranged by the local committee. A new class which it is hoped, will interest those engaged in business or industry, other than farming is being sponsored by the House of James, Port Hope. This class calls for tractors with two furrows.

Five Mayors to Plow
The Mayor’s class, which drew so much attention from both urban and rural citizens at Carp, last year, will again be presented. This event is also scheduled for the first day and assurance has already been received that the following Mayors will be participating; Mrs. Grace MacFarland, Leamington; Mrs. Bernadette Smith, Woodstock: Mayor George B. Swayne, Smith’s Falls, Mayor Allan Lamport, Toronto and Mayor J. D. Burnet, Cobourg. No doubt there will be several others making entry by Match time.

The O.P.A. board as well as the local committee, is receiving excellent co-operation from the Ontario Provincial Police in arranging for control of traffic, the Ontario Hydro Electric Power Commission is supplying hydro services and, the Bell Telephone Company is installing a complete telephone system on Tented City. The town of Cobourg is working closely in supplying water under pressure for the benefit of concessionaires.

All communities are working hard to make this year’s Match one of the best on record. There will be bands to entertain the public each day, wagon tours to provide transportation to fields and aeroplane rides every few minutes for those wishing to see the Match from the air. Demonstrations of various kinds will be staged daily. These include fire-fighting, tree planting, forage crops, etc.

The opening of the Match will be staged at 2:00 p.m. on October 6th by Honorable Vincent Massey Governor General of Canada. The Prize Presentation Banquet will be held on the Friday evening at 7:00 P.M. in the Community Centre at Grafton. This is being provided by the County of Durham and Northumberland and the Towns of Cobourg and Port Hope. It is expected there will be around a thousand present including the overseas guests.

Reviewed August 2020

By Layton Dodge

Cobourg Sentinel-Star September 25, 1963

One of the most illustrious and most successful sportsmen this community has ever known is dead. He is Fred Dufton, Cobourg's Mr. Football of a glorious bygone era.

For thirteen years - five before the war and eight after it - Fred was the colourful manager of Cobourg's renowned intermediate clubs which became a legend of the gridiron by winning three Dominion championships and numerous provincial titles.

Roy 'Scotty' Black, the excellent trainer of the team from the day it was organized in 1935 as the Red Raiders to the day in 1937 it was renamed the Galloping Ghosts by John Hayden, the present-day CDCI administrator, until that fateful day in 1953 when it folded, reminisced upon hearing of Dufton's death that the deceased was known affectionately as 'Ferocious Fred' in his heyday because he was a perfectionist himself and demanded nothing but perfection from his players.

Scotty recalled that the Red Raiders didn't win a single game in their inaugural season but improved greatly in 1936 to earn one victory, that made possible when George 'Bus' Edwards scored the decisive touchdown in Belleville. However, with the hard work of defeat came experience and the club annexed ORFU intermediate 'B' titles in '37 and '39 and an 'A' championship in '38 before the world was turned into a battleground by a German dictator named Hitler.

Seven years later, the club was revived. It was a dynamic, prolific renaissance, making the Ghosts nationally known and a household word locally. They marched to Dominion championships in 1946 and 1948, losing nary a game in the process, added another in 1950, grabbed provincial runner-up honours in 1947 and 1949 and copped Ontario intermediate 'B' crowns in 1951 and 1952. Scotty swears that the greatest team of them all was the 1950 aggregation.

Fred Dufton, who thought likewise, played no small part in achieving this remarkable string of successes. He was, as one admiring player put it, 'the whole show’. Home field for the club over the years was at Horseshow Park (later changed to McClelland Park and more recently to Donegan Park) except for 1946. Ghosts won their first Canadian championship on the fifth hole of the Cobourg Golf Club that year.

Galloping Ghosts were known far and wide as the best equipped intermediate football team in Canada. They were the first team in Canada to wear aluminum cleats and the second team in the land to wear white uniforms. Their boots were especially made in Montreal with leather supplied by Edwards and Edwards, the club's financial benefactor.

It was a standing rule that players had to be bandaged properly and their shoes shined before they trotted out for each game. Yes, the Ghosts did everything on a first-class basis or not at all.

Players such as Chuck Henderson, Archie Spooner, Ken Cooper, Milt Benson, Charlie Schrumm, Tom Brewster, Tommy Bulger, Alec Pratt, Bill Woods, Chuck Johnston, Joe Dufton, George Dufton, Jack Newton, George Galbraith, Hank Haynes, Bob Lucas, Robert Brown, Reg Stuart and Gus Bambridge of the old guard and Bob Cooper, Glen Connor, Eagle Hircock, Homer Seale, Bill Jamieson, Marty McGuire, Gord Burdick, George Campbell, Bill Irvine, Art Jones, Ken Medhurst, Red Alexander, Bob Bevan, Junior Haselton, Tommy Lewis, Paul Currelly, Jack Jamieson, Bernie Flesch, Darcy Campbell, Jim Irvine, Boyd Hendry, Vern Lees, Jim Poynton, Chub Downey, Art Brandwood, Rye Holman, Bill Jarvis and Bill Douglas of the post-war regime were just some of the names on the honour roll of Cobourg's most famous sporting fraternity.

A few of them are gone now but those who remain must have felt a twinge of nostalgia on learning that Mr. Dufton had crossed the goal line for the last time.

Fred Dufton, a one-time Cobourg intermediate baseball manager; Fred Dufton, a past president of the ORFU; Fred Dufton, a former coach of Cobourg's intermediate hockey team; Fred Dufton, a championship rose grower; Fred Dufton and the Galloping Ghosts, names synonymous with the very best in football,

Reviewed August 2020

The most famous Club in Intermediate O.R.F.U. history was born in the living room of the late Fred Dufton in 1935.

The Club that was to win eight Ontario Titles and three Dominion C.R.U. Titles between 1935 and 1953 with the war years excluded was the brainchild of "Ferocious" Fred Dufton, very aptly named for his tremendous desire to surmount all obstacles and bring home a winner.

With a number of good players just out of Collegiate, Dufton decided the time was right to start Intermediate football. With a $150.00 loan from the bank, and with the Cobourg Collegiate Coach the late T.H. McClelland, Cobourg entered the O.R.F.U. in a league with Lindsay, Belleville, Oshawa and Peterborough. The "Red Raiders" as they were originally called went through the complete season without winning a game, but did establish a core of good backfielders such as Ken Cooper, Chuck Johnston, Joe Duhon and Chuck Henderson, and a line of Spooner, Schrum, Pratt and Woods.

1936 was a banner year as the "Red Raiders" scored their first and only win one sunny day in Belleville, as Bus Edwards scored the winning touchdown to give Cobourg their first win, and the start of good times to come.

By 1937 Red Grange "The Galloping Ghost" of Illinois, was tearing up the gridirons in U.S. College Circles and the late John Hayden one of the Clubs Executive Members proposed the Club change their name to the Cobourg Galloping Ghosts and discard their red sweaters for basic white sweaters with red numerals.

The new look "Ghosts" also lured "Chuck Peck" out of Queens to do the coaching. Bob Lucas was now the quarterback with a backfield of Cooper, Edwards, McIlveen and Johnston. Schrum, Spooner and Pratt still anchored the line, however, it was in the kicking department that showed the most improvement. This was due to the acquisition of Graham "Mike" Meikle who had tried out with Balmy Beach, but who decided to come to Cobourg and led the Ghosts to their first O.R.F.U. “B” Title in a thrilling win over Stratford.

1938 saw the Ghosts go on to bigger and better things: Still coached by Chuck Peck and led by Meikle, the fiery Jack Jacobs and of course Lucas, Cooper, Johnston, Newton and Bagnell, the Ghosts waltzed through Belleville Panthers, Kingston Garrison, Toronto Eastsides and Toronto Oakwoods to finally meet Sarnia Wanderers in the Intermediate "A" Championships which they won 12-7.

In 1939 the Ghosts' fortunes slipped a little. Meikle had gone to Sarnia, several players had already enlisted and the Ghosts had to be content with the “B” Crown with wins over Oakwood Indians 8-2 in the semifinals and Smiths Falls Trojans 27-0 in the finals

The Club disbanded for the war years; however, in 1946 they came back stronger than ever to win their first Dominion Crown. Chuck Peck and Bob Lucas did the coaching. Chub Downey was the quarterback along with Ross Gilbart, Ireland Quigley, Pud Jamieson, Bus Edwards, Chuck Henderson and Chuck Johnston in the backfield. The line of Jim Poynton, Bill Jarvis, Homer Seale, Gord Beatty, Vern Goyer, Bob Campbell and Bill Douglas gave the Ghosts all they needed in a League with Peterborough, Trenton, Oshawa and the Orillia Silver Bombers with Milligan, White and Bond.

In their League Final they defeated Oshawa 25-1. Then came the two game total point Ontario "A" Finals with Niagara Falls, where they defeated the Dynamos 23-2 and 9-0 and finally the Dominion Intermediate Championship game with Montreal Eastwards and a 16-5 win for the Ghosts.

This Club set the pattern for years to come winning two more Dominion Crowns in the next four years, all led by the determined Fred Dufton.

The Central O.R.F.U. in 1947 consisted of Peterborough Orfuns, Oshawa Red Raiders, Orillia Silver Bombers, Queens Intermediates and the Cobourg Galloping Ghosts. In the League Final the Ghosts played the Silver Bombers in a two game total point final, winning 15-11 in the snow, in Orillia and played to a 6-6 draw at home to take the total 21-17. Then in the Ontario Finals, Niagara Falls came to town and this season surprised the Ghosts on a snow covered frozen field 13-6.

1948 was certainly one of the Ghosts most outstanding seasons. First the Central League dismissed Cobourg who had raised their ire by drawing several players out of Peterborough and Oshawa. Not to be denied, Fred Dufton immediately went to work and formed an Eastern League with Trenton, Trenton R.C.A.F. and Queens Intermediates.

The team consisted almost entirely of Cobourg and Port Hope players with only Bob Cooper and Rye Holman out of Varsity, Russ Boyd an ex-Argo and Glen Connors being imports. Cooper was an excellent leader and with a backfield of Quigley, Jamieson, Connors, Currelly and Medhurst, and a line of Poynton, Jarvis, Austin, Lees, Brandwood, Douglas and Boyd, the Ghosts roared through the Eastern League and into the Ontario Semifinals against who else but the Orillia Silver Bombers in what was supposed to be a sudden death game in Orillia.

With the Bombers leading 16-5 at the half, it seemed to be all over for the Ghosts, but they came back to end regulation time tied at 16. With darkness descending the League Officials ordered another game to be played on Wednesday of that week in Peterborough. The injury ridden Ghosts scored early in this one and hung on for a 6-0 win and a berth in the Ontario Finals with London Falcons, who had demolished Niagara Falls 21-2.

The Falcons came to town loaded with ex-Western Mustangs, but it was the Ghosts who prevailed 17-5 after a very tough game. In the Dominion C.R.U. Final, the Ghosts met Montreal Rocklands, a big hard hitting club featuring the running of Danny Johnston (who went on to the Alouettes) and Jim Chambers (later to the Eskimos), however the Ghosts scored early and surprised the Rocklands 10-0.

It is always hard to repeat and even though the Ghosts added a number of outstanding players, including Jake Edminston late of the Argo's who also coached the club, Andy McConvey from 0.A.C., Bob Bevan, Art Jones and with the return of Homer Seale and Jack Newton things looked promising. The League consisted of Trenton Mustangs, Queens Intermediates and Cobourg. The Ghosts romped through the schedule undefeated and then met the Orillia Silver Bombers in a two game O.R.F.U. Semifinal.

The Ghosts prevailed 29-18, winning 15-6 in Orillia and 14-12 at home. Then it was the Dundas Bombers led by Dutch Holland, Granby•and Steeves, the Bombers ousted an injury riddled Ghost crew 15-6 in Cobourg and 8-3 in a very muddy field in Dundas. Dundas were a strong club, but must have peaked against the Ghosts for they lost to•Montreal in the C.R.U. Final.

The 1950 Central O.R.F.U. League was extremely strong -  Oshawa had Davey West, Burkhart and Art Skidmore, Peterborough had Huntly, Scriver, Beatty and the McGillis brothers, and of course Orillia had Jim Milligan throwing, Mush Bond and Dave Ross running. The Ghosts had their full crew back, plus two excellent lineman in Gord Burdick and Bob McNally, along with Hawkins, Don Smith and a great running back in Ernie Darrah later to go on to the Alouettes.

Jake Edminston was a tower of strength at centre and Brandwood, Lees, Jarvis, Burdick, Seale, Douglas, Holman and Smith gave great protection to quarterback Cooper. The backfield had Medhurst, Bevan, Darrah, McConvey, Currelly, Quigley and Jamieson. This season the Ghosts were loaded with strength. They won the League losing only one game, that to Oshawa, but several games were won in the dying moments in a very exciting season.

In the Ontario Semifinals they met their old nemesis, the Dundas
Bombers. The first game in Cobourg was a terrific struggle with the Ghosts winning 3-0 on the strength of three singles by Bob Cooper.

Back in Dundas on another terrible field the game was a defensive struggle. The Ghosts line was outstanding particularly Don Smith and Bob McNally. Coopers kicking kept Cobourg in the game and late in the fourth quarter led 8-6 on the round even though they trailed 8-3 in the game. With the flag up, the Bombers kicker Mancini tried a field goal from 20 yards out, however, Ernie Darrah somehow deflected the ball and Cobourg recovered to win the round 8-6.

The O.R.F.U. Finals with London Falcons were almost an anticlimax. The Ghosts rolled to a 13-1 win in Cobourg and an 18-11 win in London. However, London did tie the game in the second quarter 11-11 before Art Jones took over and kicked two field goals in the fourth quarter to lock it up.

The Quebec winners this season were the Montreal Lakeshore Flyers featuring a big hard charging line and the running of Danny Johnston, who had given the Ghosts lots of trouble as a member of the Westmounts in '48.

The game, played on the same day as the famous "Mud Bowl" at Varsity Stadium, was dominated by a strong wind which pushed many kicks out of bounds on the west side of the field. With the weather dictating a low scoring ground game the Ghosts line prevailed and with Cooper kicking single points in the third and fourth quarters, the Ghosts won their third C.R.U. Intermediate Title 2-0.

By 1951 the Central O.R.F.U. League had expanded to include East York Blue Devils, as well as Ryerson, along with Orillia, Peterborough, Oshawa, Queens and Cobourg. Jake Edminston was back as coach. New players included Bernie Flesch, Dare Campbell, Karl Lenahan, Vic Garvin and Joe Kane.

This season saw the Ghosts pick up a lot of key injuries and as a result were nosed out of first place by the Oshawa Red Raiders led by Jim Loreno, Sully Ford and Mel Taylor. However, the Ghosts did grab second place and a berth in the sudden death Intermediate "B" Final with the Sarnia Wildcats.

The Wildcats, led by the Reeves brothers Hank & Pete, played well, but in a rough game that saw three players ejected, the Ghosts triumphed 13-0.

1952 saw the League reduced to four teams, Oshawa, Kingston R.C.E.M.E., Cobourg and the Peterborough Orfuns who now included many of the disbanded Orillia Bombers.

With the retirement of several players there was a considerable turnover in personnel. Coming into the Ghosts folds, were first of all a new coach in the person of Art West, the former Argo star who had been coaching at Balmy Beach. With him came players such as Red Alexander, Don Hatt, Magee, Hendry and Horvath, along with Jack Reeves from 0.A.C., Mel Taylor, Armstrong and Brodie who defected from Oshawa. This gave the Ghosts a potent crew, but as the season wore on it was evident something was missing. Injuries again were instrumental•in the Ghosts finishing second to the Peterborough Orfuns-Bombers combination.

This put them into the Intermediate “B” two game final, with the Kitchener-Waterloo Rams and Carl Totzke. The Ghosts won the first game in Kitchener 17-12, but in the second game in Cobourg the score was 6-1 for Kitchener at the end of regulation time and it took two periods of Overtime before the Ghosts led by Red Alexander scored, to win the “B” Title 24-18. That title would turn out to be the last the Ghosts would ever win. Even though they operated in 1953, most of the local stalwarts had retired. The club consisted almost entirely of out of town players which unfortunately did not make the playoffs. With attendance dwindling and costs spiraling, it became evident to Fred Dufton and the Ghosts executive, that it would be impossible to continue.

The Galloping Ghosts were, and still are the most famous of all teams in Cobourg's sports history. To play for, or even to be associated with the Ghosts, left one with a sense of pride and a never to be forgotten desire to perform to the best of one's ability.

In Fred Dufton, the Ghosts had a leader who proved that there is no supplement for hard work and determination. With a record of eight Ontario Titles and three C.R.U. Titles in thirteen years of operation, very few clubs could ever challenge the record of the Cobourg Galloping Ghosts.

By Paul Currelly

Reviewed August 2020

Cricket like most other sports was brought to North America. The earliest record of a cricket match being played in Canada, by civilians, appears in the form of a reference to a game played at Ile-Ste-Helene, near Montreal, in 1785. Cricket is one of the oldest sports played in Cobourg. It was popular well into the 1890s.

The Colonel’s game of cricket had much in its early favour. Youth from around Ontario, educated at Upper Canada College and themselves member of the colony’s conservative ruling class, brought the game back to their small towns where they in turn assumed leading positions as members of the judiciary, local government and the medical profession. Cricket was their informal means of maintaining the social cohesion of a local ruling class as well as providing opportunities to meet with the elite of Upper Canada.

The Cobourg Star in July 1843, as reported in the book ‘Sixty Years of Canadian Cricket’ says that " These are just our opinions, and we feel proud in witnessing the introduction into this province of those fine manly sports of Old England. We love every recollection of our early home; and we are fully convinced that the more frequently these recollections are called up, the more we will admire and the more firmly we will cling to that glorious country. The sports of the people have much to do with the formation of national character and the time occupied by a game of cricket is far better spent than in political meetings or party brawling."

And from the same book “On the 28th day of August, 1843, a match was played between Toronto and Cobourg on the grounds of the former club. The scores were: Toronto, 72 and 36; Cobourg, 30 and 23; the home team winning by 53 runs. The principal scorer for the losers, Dr. Goldstone, was the only player to make double figures, with 10, not out, and 0, to his credit. The bowling of Buck and Bourne for Cobourg, and Winckworth and Maddock for Toronto, was excellent.”

A minute book from 1846 of this earliest known cricket club in Cobourg contains printed rules of cricket with “Practical Hints To The Young Cricketer” by G.A. Barber, a member of the Toronto Cricket Club.

On May 9, 1846, the first meeting that year of the Cobourg Cricket Club was held at the Globe Hotel. R.H. Throop was the Chairman and the following Officers were elected:
President:          Dr. Goldstone
Vice President:  George Daintry
Treasurer:          H.J. Ruttan
Secretary:          W.C. Crofton
Committee:        Messrs. Tremaine, Buck and J. Bunbury

There were two categories of members; Playing and Honourary. A Playing Member was liable to be called on to play in any match. A fine of 7½ D was levied against anyone who failed to appear when the wickets were pitched, or left before a match ended.

Matches were played during the season of 1846. Among them one at Bowmanville which is fully reported in the Minute Book under June 8th. The Cobourg club was invited to play a friendly match against the Bowmanville club on the 17th. It was suggested that the Cobourg players should come up to Bowmanville by the “America” on Wednesday evening as there were no railways in Ontario at the time. Travel would have to be either by steamer or by stage coach.

Bowmanville beat Cobourg by 24 runs. A month later Cobourg hosted Bowmanville. For Cobourg, Bunbury made 12 and 7, Corrigal 20 and 8, Burnham 12 and 1. After a heavy shower fell between innings, Bailey for Bowmanville tumbled head first on his wicket in running. The umpires could not agree as to whether he was out or not, and it was agreed by both elevens to leave the decision to the Toronto Cricket Club, who decided against Bailey, and 20 runs were deducted from his score. Bowmanville still won 38 and 91, Cobourg, 64 and 40.

Trinity College and Port Hope also had cricket teams. At a match in June 1878 Port Hope had 91 and 50 for 5 wickets and Cobourg had 89 and 52. For Cobourg, Osier made 45. For Port Hope, H. Ward made 15 and 15, Weston 14 and 5 (not out), H. Read 14 (not out), G. F. Hall 5 and 14, Butcher 1 and 13 (not out).

A Cobourg cricket team in the 1880s toured the United States with success and played many matches in Cobourg with visiting clubs. Members of the touring team included J.D. Hayden, Fred Smith, J.H. Munson, Douglas Armour, Alex Hargraft, John Hargraft, Albert Woods and Lyman Kennedy.

The New York Times of August 11, 1880 reported that the Longwood Club of Boston would be playing at the Cobourg club after playing matches in Hamilton and Toronto.

Cricket continued to be popular for a number of years. A meeting to organize the sport for 1894 was described in the Sentinel Star on April 13, 1894: “One of the most successful cricket meetings ever held in Cobourg took place in the Dominion Bank last Monday evening. Over 30 members were present, and regrets were read from a number who were unable to be present. The membership fee was fixed at $2.00 and no doubt all lovers of the game will join the Cobourg club.”

One of the earliest references to a Grafton team occurs in 1867 when The Cobourg World reported a match between Grafton and the Brighton Cricket Club. The 1868 Grafton Cricket team included players Alex Godard, Jock Willoughby, Dr. William Willoughby, F.J. Bingley, John Johnston Jr., E.G. Tremain, J. Charles Rogers, Robert Z. Rogers, W. Standly, A.W.C. Bruce, James Barnum, F. Burnett, S.W. Cummings, and Alex Patterson. Local matches were played on the Roger’s field, west of Grafton’s Anglican church where the Haldimand arena stands today.

In “Sporting Notes” of the June 7, 1907 edition of the Cobourg Sentinel Star “The cricket club are arranging home games with Peterboro, Trinity College School of Port Hope, and Grace Church, Toronto. Tomorrow’s game between Port Hope and Cobourg should be a hot one. Port Hope defeated Cobourg in Port Hope last Saturday and Cobourg will have to win to keep at the head of the league. Cobourg’s home brews can be depended to win tomorrow against Port Hope Imports. Game called at 3 o’clock. Admission 25c, ladies and children 10c, ladies will be admitted free to the grandstand but gentlemen will be charged 10c extra”

The fate of cricket and baseball was inevitably tied up in the changing nature of Ontario society. Cricket began to decline as it and lacrosse were gradually supplanted by baseball’s growing popular appeal.

Sources:
“Cobourg 1798-1948” – E.C. Guillet, author
“Memories of Haldimand Township: When the Lakes Roared” – Haldimand’s History Committee, author
“Bowmanville: A Small Town at the Edge” – William Humber, author
“Sixty Years of Canadian Cricket” – Hall & McCulloch

Updated August 2020