Hockey

Few athletes are fortunate enough to be considered elite in one sport. Rarer is that athlete who is considered elite in two sports. Dave Waldie, born on April 8, 1965, in Campbellford and a life-long Alnwick-Haldimand resident, was a standout at the rink and the diamond. At five-years-old, Dave started playing Cobourg Church Hockey, and from Novice through Minor Midget he would be the Most Valuable Player and leading scorer every year. In 1980, he led his Major Bantam team to an All-Ontario championship, a first for Cobourg. The next year, as a sixteen-year-old, he suited up for the Cobourg Cougars and was named the OHA Jr. C Rookie-of-the-Year. 

Drafted by the OHL’s Cornwall Royals, he would split his first year between Cornwall and Newmarket (Tier 2), and then join the Royals full-time for the next two seasons, amassing 99 points in 1984-85. At the end of the year – due to a clerical error - Portland of the Western Hockey League was able to pick him up as an overage player. Dave enjoyed his greatest season in 1985-86, lighting the lamp 68 times, adding 58 assists for 126 points. He was named the WHL Rookie-of-the-Year and made the WHL first all-star team. He also won the Bill Anderson Sportsmanship Award for best leadership and dedication, and the Pat Shugog trophy for the MVP of the playoffs. That year Portland hosted the Memorial Cup. In four Memorial Cup games Dave tallied seven points. With his junior career now over, Dave had tryouts with both the Detroit Red Wings and the Hartford Whalers before eventually signing a contract with the Peoria Rivermen of the IHL. He played in eleven games, recording two goals and three assists before deciding to retire from pro hockey. 

He wouldn’t leave the game behind, exchanging his skates and a puck, for a pair of running shoes and a ball. He became an integral part of four Cobourg Ball Hockey League Championship teams. Dave’s success in hockey was matched by his softball accomplishments; 1 OASA All-Ontario Squirt Championship, 2 Peterborough Men’s Town League Championships, 7 Cobourg Town League Championships, 1 OASA Intermediate ‘A’ Championship, 1 OASA Intermediate ‘B’ Championship, 1 OASA Masters Championship, 2 OASA Masters Silver-Medals, 2 Canadian Masters Championships, 1 NAFA Championship, and 2 appearances in the ISC World Fastball Championships. 

Fran Jay never played a sport, but it would be impossible to tell the story of Baseball and Hockey in our community without her. In our community and beyond, she played a critical role in the growth and acceptance of woman’s hockey. A lifelong resident of Cobourg, Fran married Ron Jay on October 26, 1963. Ron was heavily involved in Baseball locally, and it didn’t take long for Fran to gravitate towards the administrative side of the sport. Joining the executive of the Cobourg Baseball Association, Fran took on countless tasks; organizing tournaments, running fundraisers, housing and feeding visiting umpires, arranging accommodations for visiting teams, working the canteen to name but a few.

 In 1987, after many years of service, she was awarded the “Curtis Products Award”, given to the person judged to have contributed the most to the Cobourg Baseball Association. While attending a Toronto Blue Jays game, Fran and Ron were featured on the stadium Jumbotron in recognition of their contributions to Baseball and were referred to as “Mr. and Mrs. Blue Jay from Cobourg”. Fran and Ron had two children, Brian and Brenda. When Brian played hockey, Brenda always tagged along. When Brenda was old enough to play in Cobourg, she wasn’t allowed a chance to play with the boys and there was no girls team. So began Fran’s legacy as an advocate for girls’ hockey. 

Although she didn’t start girls’ hockey in Cobourg, she spearheaded the creation of the United Counties Hockey League (later known as the Lakeshore League) which provided girls’ teams a chance to play against girls’ teams in other towns. In 1982, Fran became the first ever Girls Governor on the CCHL executive and brought her administrative talents to her newest passion. Later she would be elected a Life Member of the CCHL in recognition of her efforts. Eventually, Fran would join the Ontario Women’s Hockey Association executive as a Regional Director. A board member from 1993 to 1999, she was the team liaison for international teams and organized the 1997 and 1998 Senior AAA Women’s Provincial Championships that were held in Cobourg. She also helped to organize the 1997 Women’s World Championships, held in Kitchener, and was involved with the Canadian Women’s Olympic Hockey Team. 

One would be hard-pressed to find an athletic pursuit – Hockey, Softball, Basketball, Football, Track & Field – that Al Fenton did not excel in. A regular competitor at Kawartha, COSSA, OFSSA throughout his high-school career, Al’s athletic talents were on constant display. In 1967 he established six new records in six Junior events at C.D.C.I. West’s Field Day. He followed that up by winning 3 races at the Kawartha meet in Peterborough. Then in Oshawa he took home the COSSA championship in the 100- and 220-yard sprints. At the OFSSA championship in Hamilton Al ran a personal best in the 100-yard sprint. 

Al was also a valued member of the West’s Junior Harrier team, regularly competing in Kawartha Cross-Country events. He was one of three Cobourg runners chosen in 1967 to compete at the first Central Ontario-Maritimes track & field meet, held in St. John, New Brunswick. That same year – in team sports – Al was the top scorer on the Bantam ‘A’ Basketball team and was voted the Outstanding Junior Football Player by his teammates. Surprising no one and considering his many accomplishments, a just-turned 16-year-old Al was chosen as Cobourg’s ‘Athlete of the Year’ in 1967. 

Outside of school athletics, Al also played both All-Star Hockey and Softball. In 1968, along with many of his teammates, Al made the jump from Midget All-Star Hockey to the Junior B Cobourg Cougars, where he would be a prolific centreman for the next two seasons. In Softball, his talent at the plate and on the mound, helped his Dairy Queen team capture Provincial OASA championships in 1970 and 1971. Thanks to his athletic and educational prowess, Al received a four-year Division 1 Hockey scholarship at Colgate University, graduating with a BA in 1974. 

Upon invitation, he attended the Toronto Maple Leafs Rookie Camp that fall before returning to Cobourg to work at General Foods, play Fastball in the summer and Mercantile Hockey in the winter. At the same time he studied for his MBA from Western University. Upon receiving his MBA in 1978 Al, along with his young family moved to Wooster, Ohio where he settled into his life’s work, and was instrumental in introducing the sport of hockey to a generation of youngsters through the development and organization of Wooster’s Youth Hockey Club Program.  

When he was 8-years-old, Terry Lewis was gaining attention on all-star teams in both Hockey and Baseball earning commendations from no less than Layton Dodge, who proclaimed him “a star in the making”.

In 1966, Terry helped his Novice All-Star hockey team become the OMHA Zone Finalists during the winter and the Eastern Ontario Baseball Association Tyke A champions in the summer. Two years later in 1968, that same group of talented youngsters would claim the 1st ever “Little NHL” B Championship. Attending C.D.C.I. East, Terry would be a part of the Midget COSSA Championship Basketball team in 1970 and the Junior COSSA Championship Football team in 1971.

On the ice, Terry would join the Cobourg Cougars Junior C team for the 1971-72 season. That season, the Cougars were OHA finalists, with Terry finishing third in playoff scoring. The next year, 1972-73, saw the Cougars finish the year as Central and Eastern Ontario Junior C Champions with Terry sharing the laurels of being the top scorer.

The 1973-74 season brought Cobourg its first-ever OHA Championship with Terry as the team’s Captain. Terry was instrumental in the Cougars success, capturing the league’s scoring title and Most Valuable Player Award. In addition, his 162 penalty minutes set a new team record, his 88 points were a new single-season league record, and he would add 71 points in group and provincial playoffs. A versatile player, capable of playing both forward and defense, and often asked to, 1975-76 would be Terry’s final season with the Cougars, a season that saw the team reach the OHA semi-finals.

A couple of years later, Terry returned to the Cougars as the team’s Co-Coach, before taking over as Head Coach in 1979-80, guiding the team to a first-place finish and a spot in the OHA quarter-finals.

On the ball diamond, Terry joined the Cold Springs Cats fastball team in the late 1970’s, and played as a left-handed throwing shortstop when the Cats captured the Ontario Senior A Fastball Championship in 1980. Years later, with his main contribution coming from the pitching mound, Terry helped lead the Cats to three consecutive Canadian Masters Championships in 1997, 1998, and 1999, and was named the top pitcher in the 1997 championship.

For over forty years Clarke Harnden was a mainstay of the Cobourg Community Hockey League!

A volunteer, a member of the executive, a tournament organizer, but to all of those who were lucky enough to know him he will always be remembered first and foremost as a coach. Clarke gave his time, his knowledge, and more often than not his patience, in teaching prospective young hockey players the fundamentals of the game. But perhaps more importantly, Clarke also passed along his passion and pure joy for the game to generations of young boys and girls in our community.

In addition to his time on the rink, Clarke also leant his coaching expertise in the summer on the diamond, coaching teams to the Tyke EOBA championship in 1970 and 1987. As a player he was a long-time fixture in the Cobourg Town League, winning a number of league batting championships as well as playing on the 1949 Dunham Aces championship team and as a member of the 1953 OASA Intermediate B Eastern Ontario Softball championship team. In 2000, Clarke began coaching in Baltimore with a dream to keep coaching until he coached his great-grandchildren … a dream that he fulfilled.

One of those countless youngsters who learned the game from Clarke was future three-time Stanley Cup Champion and longtime NHL coach Steve Smith; “Clarke truly made you feel better about yourself every time he crossed your path. I wish more people got to see just how special he was … he was the Pied Piper when he opened the doors to the old Cobourg Arena. I treasure my memories of his charismatic smile and inviting spirit that only a lifelong coach could give. His kindness, generosity, and selflessness were second to none. All these years later, I still try to emulate his patience, wisdom and knowledge with the players I am lucky enough to coach – passing on the true gift that he gave to everyone he met”.

In 1965, Faye Gaudet began her sporting career as the bat girl with the Coverdale Aces. The following year she began playing Fastball and has continued to be on the diamond ever since in both a player and coaching capacity.

Faye was a member of the Provincial Championship Bantam B Fastball team in 1970 and in 1975 and 1976. Faye played on the Cobourg Angels Junior B Ontario Championship Team. Running concurrently, Faye began her own Fastball coaching career, winning a Bantam B Ontario Championship in 1977, leading the same team to the Silver Medalists of the Bantam A division in 1978 and then back-to-back provincial finalists in 1979 and 1980 in the Midget division.

At the rink, Faye began playing organized hockey on a Cobourg Women's team at the age of 14. Faye joined the Rice Lake Rebels the following year and played with them until heading to Centennial College to play for the Colts. After 2 years with Centennial Faye played 4 years with Brampton Canadettes Senior team. Prior to leaving for College Faye helped to establish the first Cobourg girls hockey league, which eventually led to her coaching an all-girls team sponsored by St. Michael's Church and christened “The Flying Nuns”. Faye also served as a member of the CCHL executive for years.

Faye began refereeing in the OMHA and the OWHA while umpiring in the summer with Softball Ontario. In the late 1980's, Faye was part of the organizing committee for the Cobourg Jr. Angels. Faye continued to coach a Jr. Angels team. In 2000 Faye again coached a Jr. Angels team to the Bantam Tier II PWSA Ontario Championship.

Those years also saw Faye coach boys teams for the Cobourg Legion. Faye has served on the executive board of both Cobourg Legion Minor Softball and Cobourg Baseball Association at the same time coaching her two sons in baseball and hockey. Faye returned to the Cobourg Junior organization to coach in 2003 and has been with the organization ever since in both a coaching and executive capacity. In 2017 her Novice team won the Eastern Canadian Fastball Championship. Faye also volunteered her time coaching Basketball teams in the Cobourg Youth Basketball League from 2004 to 2007.

Many athletes can point to a great game, some to an exceptional season, and a precious few to a great career; but not many athletes can match the longevity of Don Ball Sr. … Football, Hockey, Fastball, Basketball … Don Ball Sr. played them all, at an extremely high level, and won countless championships along the way.

The Left End on the legendary Cobourg Galloping Ghosts Football Team that won the Canadian Intermediate “A” Championship in 1948, Don also was the guard on the Cobourg High School Basketball team that won the Queens University High School Invitational in 1946 and 1947. It was at the hockey rink and on the ball diamond that Don made his most lasting impact. A forward, Don enjoyed a 24-year career on the ice, mostly spent in the Cobourg Mercantile League. Don was renowned for his agelessness and his sportsmanship.

In recognition, the Cobourg Mercantile League annually presented the Don Ball Trophy to the least penalized team in the circuit and in 1971, Don was awarded the Percy Baker Memorial Trophy for sportsmanship and ability. On the diamond, Don spent an incredible 37 years as a player, predominantly in the Hamilton Township and Cobourg Mercantile Fastball Leagues. Lovingly referred to as “The Grand Old Man” and “Softball's Gordie Howe”, Don was also the last of the conventional underhanded pitchers in the area, a style of delivery that often befuddled opposing batters.

Approaching 50-years-old, Don was still able to routinely throw perfect innings, while also pacing his team, the Baltimore Merchants, at the plate; an achievement not lost on Layton Dodge. “Just when it seems the sports world is peopled exclusively with cynics and complacent athletes for whom such words as “loyalty” and “the love of the game” are alien, along comes a remarkable individual like Don Ball to restore faith in humanity. That there are such gentlemen on our playing fields is comfort enough; that Don Ball should be still there at age 49 when he should be reaching for the pipe and slippers instead of a Louisville Slugger or a Cooper glove is an unexpected bonus.”

Ann & Dick Raymond

Dick and Ann Raymond have devoted a considerable amount of their lives to fulfilling a single desire, to make their beloved Grafton a better place and as a result of their tireless work and organizational skill they have forever changed, and enhanced, their community. Dick Raymond’s lifetime of volunteerism can be traced back to 1962, when as a 19-year-old, and still not old enough to drive, he started coaching a team in the Cobourg Community Hockey League (CCHL). As a coach, Dick would lead three teams to provincial hockey championships, in addition to a Provincial Women’s Softball Association (PWSA) Bronze Medal with the Cobourg Bantam Angels in 1989. But it is as an organizer and administrator that Dick has had the largest impact. In addition, to a five-decade long tenure with Grafton Minor Hockey, which saw him at various times serve as the organization’s President, Vice-President, past President, coach, equipment manager, bingo organizer, fundraiser, etc.., Dick was one of the founders and lead organizer for the Grafton Fastball Tournament for its four-decade long existence, while also serving on the Grafton Arena recreation committee for forty years, thirty-five of which saw him operate the Grafton canteen. And then there was all the hours put in to construct the Grafton facility itself, 5 ball diamonds, all the backstops, the scoreboard, fencing the diamonds, the playground, score keepers’ benches, etc. all bear the handprint of Dick Raymond. But Dick was never alone in his efforts, in fact he represented one-half of a formidable team. Every step of the way, at every event, every fundraiser, was Dick’s wife Ann. A true team, Dick and Ann would not only work together, but complement each other, so while Dick was organizing, it was Ann placing the calls and answering the phone. Despite both holding full-time jobs, and raising a family, and despite being tired most nights, both Dick and Ann Raymond always found the energy and the time to give of themselves for the greater good of their community and the people of Grafton.

Elaine Devlin

Born in Indian River on July 27, 1964, Elaine Devlin resided in Cobourg, Colborne, and Grafton for a decade and has maintained her athletic connections to our community ever since. Before moving to our area Elaine had already established herself athletically as an all-star goalie and a member of numerous OWHA (Ontario Women’s Hockey Association) gold medal teams and as one of the best softball pitchers in the province winning ORSA (Ontario Rural Softball Association) Midget and Junior provincial titles in 1981, 1982 and 1983 with Douro and Keene; two OCAA (Ontario Colleges Athletic Association) Silver Medal’s with Fleming College and numerous Peterborough Women’s City League titles. In 1985 she attended Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas on a scholarship where she played in the NCAA softball circuit. Still the holder of seven school records she was Gulf Star Conference Female Athlete of the Year; Most Outstanding Player and won a Conference Championship. Recruited to play for the Cobourg Angels, by Paul Currelly in 1984, over the next five years Elaine and her teammates medaled 9 times at the provincials, including three golds, a period of sustained excellence that was due in large part to Elaine’s pitching prowess, which didn’t go unrecognized by the opposition as she was recruited by other teams 3 different times to represent Ontario at the Canadian Championships. Since her time playing in Cobourg, Elaine has continued to contribute to the sport by coaching and attending pitching clinics during the off-season to help the next generation of hurlers hone their techniques. It would be hard to imagine an honour, accomplishment in Softball that has eluded Elaine. Beyond pitching a countless number of no-hitters and perfect games, Elaine Devlin has competed in a total of 34 Provincial championships (14 gold, 12 silver, 4 bronze), 17 Canadian championships (4 gold, 2 silver, 3 bronze), and at least 5 World Championship/International competitions (1 gold, 1 bronze) and has coached at 20 Provincial championships (5 gold, 2 silver, 5 bronze), 12 Canadian championships (2 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze) and 3 World Championship/International competitions, winning gold each time.

Ross Quigley

No one ever loved Cobourg – it’s people, its history, and the community itself – more than Ross Quigley. A lifelong Cobourg resident, born in 1944, Ross quickly developed the passions that would stay with him throughout his life, first as a player and soon branching out to coaching and refereeing. Concurrently, Ross also began a life a giving back to his beloved hometown, starting in his teenage days while working at Sommerville’s Sporting Goods when on Christmas Eve he would dress up as Santa Claus and personally give out gifts to children … to his later tenure as the President of Legion Softball, as well as his organizing the annual All-Summer Sports Parade, a summertime affair which at one time spotlighted each of the local softball/baseball/soccer teams. Ross also was long involved with many local organizations where he helped to push through countless enhancements to our town’s community. Starting with a desire to preserve the sporting history of the town, Ross began the process of what would eventually lead to the establishment of the Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame in 2016. While not the sole person involved, Ross was the driving force behind the idea, the creation, and finally, the establishment of the Hall, behind the scenes and also as both the public face and most enthusiastic supporter. And it is through these efforts that Ross has made an invaluable historical contribution to our town by bringing the sporting history of Cobourg out of the past and preserving it for future generations, through his discovery of long lost sporting events, or in gathering artifacts, to most notably shining a renewed spotlight on the builders and the athletes who through the passage of time slowly receded from active memory only to have Ross, through his tireless work and commitment, bring them back to the prominence and the local understanding that they so richly deserve. In 2021, Ross Quigley was recognized at the annual Cobourg Civic Awards ceremony as the recipient of The Angus and Bernice Read Volunteer Award, which is given to an individual whose volunteerism, leadership, commitment and actions have improved the quality of life for a large spectrum of the population in Cobourg.