1945 - COMBINED TEAMS NOT GOOD ENOUGH
The final war year had every team combining with each other to knock off
the champion A's. Brampton joined up with Toronto Lakeshore, while
Hamilton and Burlington teamed up. Only St.Catharines and Mimico would
go solo in the four team league. The Athletics were good, as usual, but
the Mounties struggled terribly.
Brampton-Lakeshore were the most successful combined team. They
finished first with a 19-5 record, two points ahead of St.Catharines.
They also had three scorers in the top four. Bill Brunskill repeated as
champion with 83 goals and 9 assists. Teammate Harry Graham was well
back with only 55 goals and 70 points. Gordon Gair placed fourth with a
40 goal 62 point effort. Other notables on the Combines were Jack
Bryans, Joe Murphy, Bill Arthurs and Norman Gair. George Thompson
played in only 2 regular season games, while Jack Gair missed all 24
contests. Both would be available for the playoffs. The Anthonys were
away in Europe. Bill was wounded in the arm, left hand and shoulder
while fighting in Germany in May. Pete was wounded in April. That
brought them both home in time for the post season. Another lacrosse
star, Inglewood's Dick Walsh, returned home after being wounded twice.
Hamilton-Burlington were no more successful than the Burlington team of
the previous season. Three wins and a tie was the best they could
manage. A secure last place finish, 8 points behind Mimico. They did
have a couple of top ten scorers. Bill Isaacs was back to true form
with a 54 point season and Doug Davidson also cracked the elite scoring
list. Hamilton-Burlington actually did as well as St.Catharines. The
Double Blues also only had two scorers make the lower half of the top
ten. Doug Cove produced 55 points and defensive specialist Vern Whitely
tied for ninth place. Where were the rest of the A's scorers? The
likes of Roy Morton and Bobby Thorpe hardly played any games. Morton
would see limited action in the playoffs too. George Urquhart had
returned from out west but he also did not play in every game. On top
of that, the A's were in the midst of a youth movement. Youngsters such
as Jim McMahon, Jerry Fitzgerald and Stu Scott had good years but they
were not yet top class scorers. Mimico faired better. Scoop Hayes,
Blain McDonald and Al Doyle all made the top ten. Hayes finished tied
for second and was top playmaker again. The Mountaineers, however,
lacked depth. That explained their 7-16-1 record.
It also explained the Mounties early exit from the playoffs. They did
give the first place club one tough week to start September. The first
game was a 19-13 Combine romp. Bryans and Brunskill scored four times
each, plus Graham tossed in a trio. Mimico came back at home and
doubled their opponents 12-6. Future Boston Bruin Eddie Sandford led
with four goals. The final two games were tight defensive wins for
Brampton-Lakeshore by scores of 6-5 and 9-7.
All four teams made the playoffs, which gave St.Catharines three games
to beat up on the Bay Area Combines. They started with an 11-5 win.
George Urquhart led with five points. The second match turned out to be
a close call. Urquhart led again with four points and each point was
needed. Scotty Jamieson fired a hattrick for the Combines but they
narrowly lost 9-8. The last game was an easy 13-4 win. Pat Smith
counted a triple and Bob Thorpe picked up four points.
St.Catharines started the Final with a 14-13 victory. Their balanced
attack barely overcame Bill Brunskill's eight goal effort. Stu Scott
was best for the winners with a hattrick. The Athletics took the second
game 18-7 as Doug Cove potted four. Pat Smith added five points, while
Jack Gair scored three times for the losers. The Combines bounced back
to win the next two contests. Brunskill had five in a 15-10 triumph.
Next Bill Arthurs six point effort secured an 11-8 win. No sooner had
Brampton-Lakeshore evened the series then they once again lost at home!
The A's finished strongest, first by doubling the Combines 14-7. George
Urquhart scored six points, Frank Madsen fired in four goals and Vern
Whitely chipped in a trio. Next came a convincing 13-5 finale. Nine
different Double Blues scored, led by Smith, Urquhart, Thorpe and Bill
Mackie. Bill Brunskill was shutout in the last game but finished the
season with 106 regular season and playoff goals - one shy of Bill
Isaacs' 1939 record of 107. Note that scoring for three of the Combine
playoff games against Mimico were lost.
The '45 Mann Cup was a flop. Vancouver Burrards won the ICLL with a
commanding 20-4 record, then survived a seven game scare from the New
Westminster Adanacs in the league final. Against St.Catharines there
was barely a fright. Led by scoring champ Bill Harris, Harry Buchanan
and Don Matheson(having returned from Navy) the Blue Bombers blasted the
Athletics three straight. Bill Whitaker was at his best in the opener
and made 38 saves but his side still lost 12-6. Pat Theale was top
scorer with three goals and two assists. After taking the weekend off,
Vancouver won the second game 18-7. Prior to the final contest,
Vancouver and St.Catharines petitioned the CLA for half profits from the
gate. They were turned down. Thus the money from the crowd of 6,000
went to the governing body in total. Frank Lee had four goals and six
points in the finale, a 14-5 romp. For the series the A's were
outscored 44-18 and outshot 136-86. Only in penalty minutes did
St.Catharines lead - 57 to 48. Quite a performance from the new
Dominion champions.
