Dave Dryburgh (November 20, 1908July 11, 1948) was a Scotland-born Canadian
sports journalist
Sports journalism is a form of writing that reports on matters pertaining to sporting topics and competitions. Sports journalism started in the early 1800s when it was targeted to the social elite and transitioned into an integral part of the n ...
. A native of
Kirkcaldy
Kirkcaldy ( ; sco, Kirkcaldy; gd, Cair Chaladain) is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south-southwest of Dundee. The town had a recorded population of 49,460 in 2011, ...
and an immigrant to
Regina, he reported on the
soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
games in which he played for ''
The Leader-Post
The ''Regina Leader-Post'' is the daily newspaper of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, and a member of the Postmedia Network.
Founding
The newspaper was first published as ''The Leader'' in 1883 by Nicholas Flood Davin, soon after Edgar Dewdney, Lie ...
''. As the newspaper's sports editor from 1932 to 1948, he primarily covered
Canadian football
Canadian football () is a team sport, sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's sco ...
and the
Regina Roughriders
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division.
The Roughriders were founded in 1 ...
, and
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
in Western Canada. His columns "Sport Byways" and "Dryburgh" give a first-hand account of sporting events, and were read widely in Western Canada. As the secretary of the
Saskatchewan Amateur Hockey Association during the 1930s and 1940s, he established its registration system including the history of each player. He also served as the official statistician for baseball, softball and hockey leagues in Saskatchewan.
After Dryburgh drowned in a boating accident at age 39, sportswriters in Western Canada established the
Dave Dryburgh Memorial Trophy
The Dave Dryburgh Memorial Trophy is a Canadian Football League trophy, given to the top scorer in the West Division.
Unlike other CFL trophies, there is no East Division counterpart, though the East Division teams were eligible in the 1995 CFL ...
for the top scorer in the
Western Interprovincial Football Union
The West Division is one of the two regional divisions of the Canadian Football League (CFL), its counterpart being the East Division. Although the CFL was not founded until 1958, the West Division and its clubs are descended from earlier leagu ...
. Other trophies named for him include the Dryburgh Memorial Trophy in the
Western Canada Senior Hockey League The Western Canada Senior Hockey League was a senior ice hockey league that played six seasons in Alberta and Saskatchewan, from 1945 to 1951. The league produced the 1946 Allan Cup and the 1948 Allan Cup champions, and merged into the Pacific Coas ...
, and the Dryburgh Memorial Trophy in the Southern Saskatchewan Baseball League. He was posthumously inducted to the Football Reporters of Canada section at the
Canadian Football Hall of Fame
The Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates great achievements in Canadian football. It is maintained by the Canadian Football League (CFL). It includes displays about t ...
in 1981.
Early life
David Dryburgh was born on November 20, 1908, in
Kirkcaldy
Kirkcaldy ( ; sco, Kirkcaldy; gd, Cair Chaladain) is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south-southwest of Dundee. The town had a recorded population of 49,460 in 2011, ...
, Scotland.
[; ] He was one of seven brothers to parents George and Jane Dryburgh.
He arrived in
Regina, Saskatchewan
Regina () is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, after Saskatoon, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 C ...
, with his family on July 1, 1912, one day after the
Regina Cyclone
The Regina Cyclone, or Regina tornado of 1912, was a tornado that devastated the city of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, on Sunday, June 30, 1912. It remains the deadliest tornado in Canadian history with a total of 28 fatalities and about 300 p ...
, then went back to Scotland during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. The family returned to Regina following the war, where Dryburgh completed his education and played
soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
as a youth and adult. He was introduced to journalism part-time while reporting on the soccer games in which he played, since ''
The Leader-Post
The ''Regina Leader-Post'' is the daily newspaper of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, and a member of the Postmedia Network.
Founding
The newspaper was first published as ''The Leader'' in 1883 by Nicholas Flood Davin, soon after Edgar Dewdney, Lie ...
'' had nobody assigned to cover the sport.
He played right
midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
on the Regina City soccer team that played against a touring English team.
Dryburgh had a brief apprenticeship as furniture maker with his father in the mid-1920s, which ended after recovering from
pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
and changing jobs on advice of his doctor.
Journalism career
![Regina Leader-Post in 1967](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/58/Regina_Leader-Post_in_1967.jpg)
Dryburgh became a full-time journalist and sports writer with ''The Leader-Post'' in 1928, then became its sports editor in 1932.
Other positions he held with the newspaper included wire editor, city editor, and local politics correspondent.
He primarily covered
Canadian football
Canadian football () is a team sport, sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's sco ...
and
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
.
He frequented the press boxes at the
Queen City Gardens, and at
Taylor Field for the
Regina Roughriders
The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division.
The Roughriders were founded in 1 ...
. He also often reported on curling, golf, baseball and softball, and travelled Canada extensively to give readers a first-hand account of sporting events.
''The Leader-Post'' referred to Dryburgh as the "chairman" at the coffee rows in the Balmoral Cafe and Ritz Cafe in Regina, where he was frequently involved in sports conversations.
His columns "Sport Byways" and "Dryburgh" were regularly printed in ''The Leader-Post'' and read widely in Western Canada.
In addition to writing, he began hosting a daily sports talk series on
CKCK-AM in February 1940.
Regina Roughriders' coach
Al Ritchie
Alvin Horace "Al" Ritchie (December 12, 1890 – February 21, 1966), also known by his nickname "The Silver Fox", was a Canadian football player, coach, and administrator who was the head coach of the Regina Roughriders from 1928 to 1932, in 193 ...
felt that Dryburgh had "a style all his own", that was he clear and graphic, and that he was fair and honest with athletes and did not sidestep issues.
Saskatchewan's
Canadian Olympic Committee
The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC; french: Comité olympique canadien) is a private, non-profit organization that represents Canada at the International Olympic Committee (IOC). It is also a member of the Pan American Sports Organization ...
member
Jack Hamilton said that Dryburgh was, "outspoken and fearless and yet most fair".
Notre Dame Hounds
The Notre Dame Hounds are a junior "A" ice hockey team based in Wilcox, Saskatchewan, Canada. They are members of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL). The Hounds also had a junior "B" team that played in the South Saskatchewan Junior ...
founder
Athol Murray
Athol Murray (January 9, 1892December 15, 1975) was a Canadian Catholic priest and educator. He built a collection of shacks in Wilcox, 55 km south of Regina into a non-denominational residential college. It began as a convent school founded ...
stated that, Dryburgh "lived the game he wrote", and that, "many a time his reader could catch the very atmosphere and feel of the fight".
In addition to reporting on hockey, Dryburgh was a long-time secretary of the
Saskatchewan Amateur Hockey Association during the 1930s and 1940s.
He established the association's registration system which included the history of each player.
[; ] In 1943, he was named a trustee of the ''
Edmonton Journal
The ''Edmonton Journal'' is a daily newspaper in Edmonton, Alberta. It is part of the Postmedia Network.
History
The ''Journal'' was founded in 1903 by three local businessmen — John Macpherson, Arthur Moore and J.W. Cunningham — as ...
'' Trophy, awarded by the
Canadian Amateur Hockey Association
The Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA; french: Association canadienne de hockey amateur) was the national governing body of amateur ice hockey in Canada from 1914 until 1994, when it merged with Hockey Canada. Its jurisdiction include ...
to the intermediate-level champion of Western Canada. He also served as the official statistician for several leagues including, the Southern Saskatchewan Baseball League, the Intercity Softball League, and the Saskatchewan Senior Hockey League.
Personal life and death
![B-Say-Tah Point 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/B-Say-Tah_Point_2.JPG)
Dryburgh coached ''The Leader-Post'' ice hockey team in the local commercial league during the 1929–30 season. He was also a member of the Regina Curling Club, and a director at the Wascana Country Club.
On August 17, 1931, Dryburgh was married to Eunice Turner, then honeymooned at
Prince Albert National Park
Prince Albert National Park encompasses in central Saskatchewan, Canada and is located north of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Saskatoon. Though declared a National parks of Canada, national park March 24, 1927, official opening ceremonies weren't ...
.
Dryburgh and his wife never had children.
His mother died in September 1932, after an operation at age 44.
While on vacation with his wife, Dryburgh drowned on July 11, 1948, in a boating accident near
B-Say-Tah Point on
Echo Lake. He was operating the motor when the boat capsized, and he could not swim.
His funeral three days later was attended by hundreds of mourners from across Western Canada, including fellow sports editors, newspapermen and sportspersons. He was interred in Regina Cemetery.
Legacy and honours
After Dryburgh's death, ''
Calgary Herald
The ''Calgary Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Publication began in 1883 as ''The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate, and General Advertiser''. It is owned by the Postmedia Network.
History
''The ...
'' sports editor Bob Mamini stated, "for 18 years Dave Dryburgh carried out assignments with the speed, understanding and fearlessness that made him a sports authority that will be hard to replace", and that "you didn't always agree with what he had to say but you had to admire the way he said it".
''Edmonton Journal'' sports editor George Mackintosh wrote that, "Dryburgh was held in high esteem particularly by the newspaper fraternity", and that he was "one of the keenest observers of the sportive scene in the dominion".
Manitoba Amateur Hockey Association secretary and ''
Winnipeg Free Press
The ''Winnipeg Free Press'' (or WFP; founded as the ''Manitoba Free Press'') is a daily (excluding Sunday) broadsheet newspaper in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It provides coverage of local, provincial, national, and international news, as well as ...
'' sports editor
Ed Armstrong
Ed, ed or ED may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Ed'' (film), a 1996 film starring Matt LeBlanc
* Ed (''Fullmetal Alchemist'') or Edward Elric, a character in ''Fullmetal Alchemist'' media
* ''Ed'' (TV series), a TV series that ran fro ...
felt that, Dryburgh made Eastern Canada "east-west conscious in three of our major sports—rugby football, hockey and curling".
Sports columnist Tom Moore wrote in ''
The Albertan'' that Dryburgh was;
The
Western Canada Senior Hockey League The Western Canada Senior Hockey League was a senior ice hockey league that played six seasons in Alberta and Saskatchewan, from 1945 to 1951. The league produced the 1946 Allan Cup and the 1948 Allan Cup champions, and merged into the Pacific Coas ...
established the Dryburgh Memorial Trophy in July 1948, awarded to the top
goaltender
In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...
during the regular season. The Southern Saskatchewan Baseball League established the Dryburgh Memorial Trophy in October 1948, awarded to the top
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...
during the regular season. In November 1948, the
Dave Dryburgh Memorial Trophy
The Dave Dryburgh Memorial Trophy is a Canadian Football League trophy, given to the top scorer in the West Division.
Unlike other CFL trophies, there is no East Division counterpart, though the East Division teams were eligible in the 1995 CFL ...
was established by sportswriters in Western Canada, given to the top scorer in the
Western Interprovincial Football Union
The West Division is one of the two regional divisions of the Canadian Football League (CFL), its counterpart being the East Division. Although the CFL was not founded until 1958, the West Division and its clubs are descended from earlier leagu ...
.
Dryburgh was posthumously inducted to the Football Reporters of Canada section at the
Canadian Football Hall of Fame
The Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates great achievements in Canadian football. It is maintained by the Canadian Football League (CFL). It includes displays about t ...
in 1981.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dryburgh, Dave
1908 births
1948 deaths
20th-century Canadian journalists
Accidental deaths in Saskatchewan
Boating accident deaths
Canadian Football Hall of Fame inductees
Canadian male journalists
Canadian radio personalities
Canadian sports executives and administrators
Canadian sportswriters
Journalists from Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan Amateur Hockey Association executives
Scottish emigrants to Canada
Sportspeople from Kirkcaldy
Sportspeople from Regina, Saskatchewan