Rugby Ontario Announces 2019 Hall of Fame Class

October 03, 2019

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Rugby Ontario Hall of Fame Class of 2019

October 3rd, 2019

(WHITBY, ON) -  Rugby Ontario is excited to announce the Rugby Ontario Hall of Fame class of 2019. This group of individuals have contributed a tremendous amount to the Ontario rugby community and will be officially inducted into the Hall of Fame at the 2019 Rugby Ontario Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Dinner. 

Honoured by the Rugby Ontario Hall of Fame Selection Committee as the seventeenth group of inductees are Bob Boos & Mick Ferras, Paul Myers, William “Billy” O’Mahony, Ron Pither, Sherri Sparling, Toronto Scottish Women’s Team (1996-2005) and Glen Steen. The Class of 2019 will be recognized at the Rugby Ontario Hall of Fame & Awards Ceremony and Dinner on the evening of Saturday, November 23rd, 2019. The ceremony – in conjunction with the Rugby Ontario Awards evening – will be held at the Maple Banquet Hall in Mississauga, Ontario, commencing at 5.30pm.  

For guests that wish to attend the dinner, tickets can be purchased, either individually for $100 or in tables of 8 or 10 ($95 per person).  When purchasing tickets, please indicate any group you wish to be seated with. We can then ensure all guests are seated together where requested. Rugby Ontario also has an accommodation arrangement for Saturday, November 23rd at the nearby Hilton Garden Inn. The link for this booking is available until Thursday 24th October.

To purchase tickets for the event, click here.

To access the hotel booking link, click here

Further information on the Rugby Ontario Hall of Fame & Awards Ceremony and Dinner can be obtained from David Patterson, Rugby Ontario Director of Administration & Member Services at dpatterson@rugbyontario.com or 647 560 4790 ext 1003.

 Below is a short bio on each of the 2019 Inductees. Congratulations to the 2019 Rugby Ontario Hall of Fame Class!

 

2019 Rugby Ontario Hall of Fame Class

 

Bob Boos & Mick Ferras 

  • 27 years coaching together at Brantford Collegiate Institute (BCI) • 4 OFSSA Golds, 11 OFSSA medals
  • Help found Brant County high school league (1989)
  • Brant County (BCSSA) Championships - 21 of 27 championships
  • Organized and led ten tours to the UK
  • Developed Canadian and Ontario representative players such as Aaron Carpenter, Barclay Luke, Marc Cohoon, Dave Neill, Peter Huigenbos, Sam Vilaca, Ryan Stickle, Wes Montgomery 
  • Current BCI Coaches Marc Cohoon & Graham Boos, Current Harlequins Coach Dave Neill and many others were developed under Mick & Bob's guidance. 
  • In 2015, Bob & Mick were awarded the George Jones Memorial Award for Lifetime Sports Volunteerism (all sports) 

Paul Myers 

  • Been a staple of the rugby community in the golden horseshoe and City of Toronto for the past 30 years. 
  • Outstanding job in the growth and development of TIRF Rugby ensuring players from across the city had their chance to represent their region, province and even country (Josiah Morra, Marcello Wainwright and Kyle Lagasca). 
  • Developed partnerships in Toronto (e.g. Toronto Police 31,FOCUS Rexdale) for children from a low-income housing to access safe supervised sport and the community leaders that facilitate the programming. 
  • Paul has also delivered over 15 coaching development courses across the province and truly grows the game every single day. 
  • Coached at Malvern HS from 1995 to 2018 
  • Awarded the inaugural Doncaster Foundation Mentorship Award

William “Billy” O’Mahony 

  • Billy has been involved in Sarnia Saints rugby club for 42 years.
  • Was instrumental in introducing rugby to the Lambton County high schools.
  • Developed 6 High school programs for both boys and girls.
  • Driving force in negotiating with community leaders to find a home field for the Sarnia Saints (Norm Perry Park). 
  • Negotiated with the city of Sarnia to acquire clubroom facilities and change rooms for the teams.
  • Resurrected the Sarnia Saints Women’s team
  • Original trophy sponsor for the Lambton County Secondary School Rugby Competitions • Coached the Sarnia men’s side to two Ontario Cup competitions

Ron Pither 

  • 40 plus years of service in the Durham region
  • The "godfather" of the Durham High School Rugby (LOSSA)
  • Anderson CVI (1972-1990)- 8 LOSSA Championships/Barbarian Cup 1985
  • Port Perry HS (1990-2002)- 10 LOSSA Championships/OFSAA 1999/Barbarian Cup 1996,1997
  • Facilitated Rugby tours for thousands of Durham (LOSSA) players and facilitated hosting of thousands of players from England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.
  • Oshawa Vikings (late 1960s to early 2000s)
  • Established an outstanding "Coaching Tree".
  • OFSAA Leadership in Sport Award (Rugby) and Volunteer Service Award (all sports)

Sherri Sparling 

  • 19 International caps for Canada
  • 2002 World Cup captain (finished 4th)
  • 2001: Canadian Captain for 2 test matches vs U.S.A and 3 test match tour to Wales. • 1998 World Cup representative
  • Co-founded & coached the St Pius X High School Women’s Rugby team.
  • 1993/94: Queen's University MIP and Rookie of the Year

Toronto Scottish Women Team 1996-2005 

  • Six Ontario Women's Rugby Championships in ten years (1998, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005) 
  • Vanbot's Cup Champions in 1998, 1999, 2000, 2004 (Top Ontario v Quebec club team) 
  • 10 National team players (Maureen MacMahon, Moira Shiels, Heather Hunt, Anne
    Marie Fleming, Tamara Curtis, Araba Chintoh, Marlene Donaldson, Heather Moyse,
    Dawn Dauphinee, Cheryl Phillips)
  • 19 Ontario Provincial team players 
  • Significant Subsequent Community Involvement (High School, Club & University
    coaches, RC Board of Directors, Canadian Rugby Club Championship)

Glen Steen 

  • Ontario representative 1973 to 1980 (Captain 1979-1980) 
  • Niagara Rugby Union representative 1971 to 1983 (Captain 1980 to 1983) 
  • Brantford Harlequins 1972 to 1983 (Captain 1980 to 1983) 
  • Niagara Rugby Union coach 1980 to 1983 
  • Director - Niagara Rugby Union 1975 to 1983 
  • University of Waterloo player 1967 to 1971 
  • Glen was known and recognized for his tenacious play as a back row forward, one of
    the best in Ontario, specifically during his Rugby playing career in the 1970’s.

ABOUT THE ONTARIO BLUES

The Ontario Blues program is the high performance representative program for male and female rugby players in Ontario. Rugby Ontario is represented at the provincial level by the Ontario Blues. The program includes representative teams from Under-15 to Senior in both Women’s and Men’s Fifteens and Under-18 Men's and Women's Sevens. Specifically, the program is designed to develop and showcase rugby players for Canadian representative national teams.


ABOUT RUGBY ONTARIO

Rugby Ontario is the provincial sports governing body responsible for the organization of rugby in Ontario. Our mission is to establish a stronger identity for rugby in Ontario by promoting the sport’s core values and by fostering a culture of inclusiveness and excellence on and off the field of play.

To learn more, visit https://www.rugbyontario.com/


WANT MORE INFORMATION?

Dalton Finkbeiner

Communications and Marketing Coordinator - Rugby Ontario

647-560-4790 x 1006
dfinkbeiner@rugbyontario.com


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