St. Hyacinthe–Donnacona Navy was an
amateur
An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, autodidacticism, self-taught, user-generated, do it yourself, DI ...
Canadian football
Canadian football, or simply football, is a Sports in Canada, sport in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete on a field long and wide, attempting to advance a Ball (gridiron football), pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposi ...
team during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. They won the
Grey Cup
The Grey Cup () is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested between the winners ...
in
1944
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 2 – WWII:
** Free France, Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command First Army (France), French Army B, part of the Sixt ...
.
[ The team was named after the communications training school and the naval reserve division .
]
Game
Both 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.
With a few exceptions, a senior men's football championship has been contested in Western Canada since 1911 ...
and the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union
The East Division is one of the two regional divisions of the Canadian Football League, its counterpart being the West Division. Although the CFL was not founded until 1958, the East Division and its clubs are descended from earlier leagues.
T ...
had no 1944 regular season due to the Second World War. Lower-ranked leagues did participate for the playoffs. St. Hyacinthe–Donnacona Navy was part of the Quebec Rugby Football Union
The Quebec Rugby Football Union (QRFU) was a football league consisting of teams from Quebec and formed in 1883. Eastern Ontario teams like Ottawa City and Ottawa College joined in 1894.
League formation and play
The QRFU was formed officiall ...
. On 25 November 1944 the St. Hyacinthe–Donnacona Navy defeated the Hamilton Wildcats 7–6 at the Civic Stadium, in Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...
, to win the 32nd Grey Cup.
Roster
St. Hyacinthe–Donnacona Navy defeated the Hamilton Wildcats at the 32nd Grey Cup.
Championship roster (bold denotes the player played in the Grey Cup game):
Charlie Ellis, Wally Charron, Curly Hiltz, Ginger O’Brien, Bucko McLeod, Glen Brown (Coach), Roy Kirbyson, John Taylor, John Crncich, Steve Levantis, Jack Wedley, Al Hurley, Wally Patch, Malcolm Baker, Hal Chard, Tom Bainbridge, Ian Barclay, Sam Abbott, Whitey Leonard, Dick Swarbrick, Pat Santucci, Dutch Davey, Mickey McFall, Dave Kotavitch, Al Symms, Jim Spicer, Des Campbell, L. Raymond, W.O. John Montague, P.O. George Reid, Bill Kydd, Louis Segatore, Fred Porter, Surgeon Lt. Comdr. Richard Lane, Lt. Christopher Ellis, Moe Segal, Paul Kenwood, Milton Scully, Juan Sheridan [
]
Post 1944
In 1969, the then CFL commissioner Jake Gaudaur, gave the team a chance at championship rings for $300 each.
Quebec Rugby Football Union season-by-season
References
External links
HMCS St.Hyacinthe-Donnacona Navy Combines’ 1944 Season
Grey Cup
Defunct Canadian football teams
Hm
1940s disestablishments in Quebec
1943 establishments in Quebec
1943 in Canadian football
1944 in Canadian football
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