After huddling with all its stakeholders at a summit in Brampton during the off-season, the governing body of minor football in Ontario has come up with a plan of attack. And the goal can be summed up in one word — unification.
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“We had a discussion with all the presidents of the leagues about the state of football and how it was very fractured with too many (leagues) competing,” said Brampton’s Ian Smith, president of the Ontario Football Alliance (OFA). “The best structure for football within Ontario has to have a unified structure where everyone is working together.”
Changes began last February when the South Central Ontario Football League disbanded. Hamilton’s Steel City Steelers, which had peewee, atom and junior varsity teams in the league, have since joined the Ontario Minor Football League (OMFL).
The OMFL is one of the remaining elite-level leagues in the province, along with the Ontario Varsity Football League (OVFL) and the Ontario Football Conference (OFC).
The membership of the OFA is about 15,000.
“The long-range plan is that all teams are playing in a tiered structure within Ontario, so kids that start off in the minor league programs have a very clear path to playing in the CFL,” Smith said.
Steelers will field five teams in the OMFL this season — two junior varsity (players 15-16), varsity (17-18), bantam (13-14) and peewee (11-12).
“With SCOFL not being around, it doesn’t really matter,” said Ken Crichton, president of the Steelers. “It worked out in the end. We just went from one league to another.”
Crichton will also serve as head coach of the Steelers varsity squad.
“Maybe next year we can get the OFC and the OMFL together to become one league as well,” Crichton said. “Hopefully, we can join forces and start creating the perfect model of football, which is one league, here in Ontario.”
Smith, a former high school and university player who has coached for almost 30 years, said: “We’re a very young PSO (provincial sports organization) compared to hockey and basketball. We’ve only been around for four years. We’re trying to build the procedures that will properly grow football in Ontario.
“We’re working toward our goal of 2011 to have a unified playing structure. Talks are ongoing with all parties to ensure that happens.”
Representatives of the CFL and Canadian university football also were involved in the summit meeting held by the OFA.
The OVFL, OFC and OMFL operate from May until August, while two other leagues — the Central Ontario and the Southwestern Ontario — run from August until November.
The oldest players compete in the OFC’s junior division (under 22). That loop includes the Hamilton Hurricanes and the Burlington Braves.
Stories by Larry Moko
The Hamilton Spectator
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