Hamilton Tiger-Cats

This is my final blog for the school semester. I may continue to blog about the few CFL teams that I did not have a chance to talk about. But if this is my final blog, I would like to take the opportunity to write about the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

As many of you know, I am a huge fan of this team. I am originally from Hamilton, Ont. and consider myself a Hamiltonian and a die-hard fan. Some say, I bleed 'black and gold'.

I would like to think that I have been a fan since the day I was born. I mean, it was my father who took me to my first game and we continue that tradition. When he was a child, he started attending Tiger-Cat games, sitting in the west endzone for fifty cents. The prices have increased dramatically since.

Fans of the Tiger-Cats have been through a lot over the years. 29 championship appearances, 15 Grey Cup victories, ownership changes, renovations, possible bankruptcies and now a team that is going to play an entire season on the road in Guelph, Ont.

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats have many passionate fan bases. The most popular group is called the 'Box J Boys'. These are a group of men who exemplify the definition of a Tiger-Cat fan. Hard helmets, witty t-shirts, black & gold kilts and a pair of Doc Martins. These men all sit together in Box J and travel around the country to various games together, including the Grey Cup each year. They are known throughout the league. They consider themselves Tiger-Cats fan first, but overall CFL fans. They are great ambassadors for the league.

The next group is 'Shockers Corner'. These men are a bunch of rowdy young gentlemen who sit together right behind the visitors bench. Their main objective throughout the game is to p*ss off the opposing team. Alcohol may or may not be involved. I would say this is a great thing to see because the organization needs the next generation of fans to start coming and caring about the team like many have done so in the past.

There are many stories I could get into, but I have a limited space. So until next time, Oskee Wee Wee!

CFL Schedule

This past week the Canadian Football League finally released the 2013 schedule. The schedule is typically released in the month of February to gain some media attention in the down months of the CFL offseason.

This year was a different story. The league had every right to take as much time as they needed to generate the upcoming season's schedule. Although, there was a lot of discussion on fan forums, saying how long it is taking the league, it better be worth it, it can't be that hard, etc. Well this year the league was dealing with issues that they normally don't have to worry about.

First, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are finally moving into a new stadium, after being a year behind schedule - I am sure the league wanted to have a firm date of completion.

Next, the Toronto Argonauts play in a stadium that is home to the Toronto Blue Jays of the MLB. The Blue Jays get first priority for scheduling, since their owners own the stadium as well. Plus, the Rogers Centre is host to many major events and concerts throughout the year that may generate more money than the Argonauts.

Finally, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats home will be away from home this coming season. The Tiger-Cats are playing in Guelph, Ont. at Alumni Stadium, which is also home to the Guelph Gryphons of the CIS. These three situations then have a ripple effect on the rest of the league and teams as well.


Although, I was completely satisfied as a fan and season ticket holder of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, I cannot say the same for other fans. The classic Labour Day game that is played between the Argonauts and Tiger-Cats at (the now demolished) Ivor Wynne Stadium. Fans still expected this game to be played on the same day either in Toronto or Guelph. Neither happened. The two teams will now play on Thanksgiving Monday - aka the 'turkey bowl'. I think this will provide an opportunity for new excitement for fans. Both teams should be competitive this coming season and that game could have major playoff implications.

I have realized over the last few years and this most recent situation with the delayed schedule release that sports fans are never happy. Win or lose they always find a problem with something.

Once the season starts, everyone will forget about this past week and will be focused on their team being victorious each week. Striving for the main goal to win the Grey Cup, being held in Saskatchewan.

So everyone can get excited for another exciting season of CFL football and begin the road to the 101st Grey Cup!

Edmonton Eskimos

Edmonton Eskimo fans have been treated one of the most successful franchises in the league and North America professional sports. Having been in the CFL since 1949 (third youngest in the league) has been competitive every year.

Having some of the most rabid fans in the league creates a great atmosphere. Commonwealth Stadium is a large venue for CFL football, compared to the other teams stadiums. The fans have no trouble coming out and filling it either. For a regular season game in 2009, Edmonton sold out and needed standing room capacity to fit the 62,517+ that turned out for the game.

The Green & Gold faithful have been treated to 13 Grey Cups, 34 consecutive playoff appearances (ending in 2005) and have done this while being a community owned franchise.

The Eskimos will continue to have success on and off the field and in the stands with the fans.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Winter is Ontario is like Winnipeg's Summer.

However, the weather does not stop Blue Bomber fans from coming out and supporting the team. Bomber fans are known to be some of the most passionate sports fans in North America. Prior to the Winnipeg Jets returning to the NHL, the Bombers is all Manitoba had for professional sports.

These fans deserve credit. In professional sports, when a team does not win a championship in years, let alone decades, fans typically boycott and stop supporting to show their frustration (other than the Maple Leafs). The Blue Bombers have not won a Grey Cup since 1990. In an eight-team league this is unacceptable to most fans.

The Blue Bomber fans may not be able to claim a Grey Cup championship in recent memory, but they were able to rebrand themselves a couple years ago. In football, defence wins championships. Typically, the defence is not the talk of the town though. However, in Winnipeg the defence is the town. The front office assembled an aggressive and talented defence in 2011. The defensive leaders went on to portray themselves as 'Swaggerville.' Over the course of the season the term 'swagger' and 'swaggerville' took over Winnipeg, Mannitoba and even across the league.


Fans loved the idea of classifying the defence as Swaggerville. Some fans may of taken it too far.

The defence even elected a mayor of Swaggerville. Odell Willis, loved the attention,  he did not shy away from the camera and made it known he was the mayor of Swaggerville every chance he had.

The team is looking to start the 2013 season off on the right foot, opening their new stadium. The fans will come out to support their team and be some of the most unique CFL fans there are.

Toronto Argonauts

When sitting in the giant concrete bowl (known as the 'Rogers Centre'), all you will hear is "AARRRRRRGGOOOOOOOOSSSS!"

The Toronto Argonauts play in a stadium that may be a little too big for them. However, the fans that do show up are the 'true' fans in Toronto. They hoot and holler like any other CFL fans throughout the league. The Argonauts are also lucky to have their own fan groups like many other teams.

For a city that needs to compete with every other major professional sport, they are doing well. Considering that the Argo fans are the only ones that have been able to enjoy championships in recent memory; not one, not two, but four championships since the last Toronto professional sports team won (Blue Jays) other than the Toronto Rock. The Argonauts have the 'Argonotes' and 'Argos Admirals' who are dedicated to the team like no others. They commit their own time to ensure news is forwarded to the rest of Argo Nation and that the team has a presence at any event that the Argos are apart of. The Argonotes are a pipe band that plays throughout the game. Some consider it a distraction, others consider it a tradition and fun.

This past season, the Argo fans showed how much they loved their team. The 100th Grey Cup was being played in Toronto and the Argonauts eventually made the finals after a long season. I, myself attended the game and have never seen so much "double blue" at a football game in Toronto. For a stadium that holds over 53,000, it had to be three-quarters Argos fans. It was a great site to see, even though they ended up winning the Grey Cup (as a Tiger-Cat fan).

Even as Tiger-Cat fan, I hope that the city of Toronto continues to support the Argonauts in large numbers. The CFL depends on the teams in southern Ontario (Toronto and Hamilton) to be successful, if the league is to be successful. It would just be nice if the Tiger-Cats were competitive, because there is nothing like watching Argo and Tiger-Cat fans battle it out at football games.

Ivor Wynne is Completely Down

[courtesy of the Scratching Post]

I realize this post is not reflecting on a team's specific fan group. However, the fact that Ivor Wynne Stadium is now completely down and in piles of rubbish is news for any CFL fan.

Ivor Wynne is a stadium that held a lot of character. Wooden bench seats, trough urinals and pedal sinks. The stadium is known for the sightlines by the fans. The visiting players know how close they are to the next trash talking from the vocal crowd. Over the last 82 years, the stadium became a beautiful piece of history for many people.

As a 25-year-old, I have already experienced many memories within Ivor Wynne Stadium. There has been highs and lows, wins and loses. And as any sports fan, some memories are greater than others. The best memories have come over the last three years.

Christmas 2009, my father surprised my brother and myself with season tickets. It has been a Christmas present that keeps on giving. 'The Ol' Boys' get to attend the Tiger-Cat games together, drink a couple brown pops, cheer Oskee Wee Wee and even a cow bell or two.

There are many more memories, but thought I would touch on the most important memory and let the picture above do all the talking.

It will be missed by many, but I myself am looking forward to Ivor Wynne 2.0 to create new memories and hopefully successful championship seasons by the Tiger-Cats starting in 2014.

Montreal Alouettes

Quebecer's are passionate. They are passionate about everything they do. Football happens to be one the things they do well. The Montreal Alouettes have a whole province to pull fans from. It is easy to have a fan base such as theirs with the success the team has endured since coming back into the CFL in 1996.

The passion that the Alouettes fan have force the team to plan trips to other cities for games. The Montreal Alouettes are the only team that actively plans and promotes to games outside of the province. Typically, Toronto and Hamilton are chosen cities. The ‘Fan Train’ provides fan the opportunity experience a game with fellow fans and travel hours outside of their hometown. I have experience the Montreal fans coming into Ivor Wynne Stadium in Hamilton, Ontario – passion is an understatement.

Photo courtesy of Daniel Nugent-Bowman

The team and fans have been able to experience success in the 2000’s. Having made it to the big show – the Grey Cup – eight times and winning three. 

The Alouettes typically play in McGill Stadium throughout the regular season. However, when entering the playoffs the demand for tickets is through the roof. The team moves operations into Olympic Stadium. The 'Big O' holds 60,000 plus fans for a football game and they sell out in minutes!

(www.cfl.ca)

Now, imagine a stadium of 60,000 thinking they are at a european football match and chanting 'Ole!, Ole!, Ole!' as a victory is in sight. Alouettes fans create an atmosphere that is truly unique to Montreal and Quebec for football in Canada.

Next up: Toronto Argonauts

This is a first!

I am writing my first blog…ever!

I have chosen to write a blog over the next couple months looking at the Canadian Football League (CFL) and its fans. The CFL is unique in many ways compared to its counterpart south of the border.

This is why I have chose to name the blog ‘Canada’s Game’.

You are probably visiting my blog because you are aware of the CFL and its fans, because you have to as a fellow student or because you just stumbled upon here.

A few reasons why I have chosen to write on the CFL and the fans across the league.

• Raised in Hamilton for 23 years – how couldn’t I love the CFL?
• Conducted research on ‘fandom’ in the CFL while attending Brock University, this is a different way to continue that; 
• I consider myself one the ‘crazy’ fans in the CFL.

Tiger-Cats Opening Day - July 1, 2009

I hope you enjoy the next few weeks. I hope I can provide a unique perspective. Comments, suggestions and feedback is welcomed.