History
Mr. John Woods, the then Commissioner of Finance, Mr. Rashmi Nathwani, Commissioner of City Properties, Mr. Wazir Khullar, Mr. Sheik Kadir of City’s Finance Department, Mr. Ron Barrow of City’s Fire Department, Mr. Dennis Perlin, City Solicitor and Mr. Tim Woods founded the Toronto City Hall Cricket Club in 1985.The Mayor’s Cup is actually a spin off of an annual match-up between the Toronto City Hall Cricket Club (TCHCC) and the St. George’s Society. In 1987, a report of the Annual match between TCHCC and St. George’s Society was first adopted by the City Council when Mr. John Woods gave a tongue in cheek explanation to the Council of the terminology used in cricket such as “fine leg, short leg, long leg, square leg, maiden over, slips, covers, silly mid on, googly, etc.” in his report of an annual match between TCHCC and St. George’s Society.
About TMCC
Toronto Mississauga Cricket Club (TMCC) is a not for profit organization. TMCC was constituted to promote the game of cricket among Youth and Adults in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Since our inception we have now grown into an organization that has undertaken several community based activities in the Greater Toronto Area. Key activities that we have undertaken over the years include promoting Age Well Programs for the seniors which includes yoga classes with Pranayama & fitness programs for all age groups, Kids coaching and mentoring programs, Friendly but professionally administered Cricket Tournaments for Youth and Kids, physical fitness and promoting gender neutrality in sport.
The TMCC league is known for being family friendly and competitive at the same time. We currently have about 300 plus active participants and our programs touch about 2000+ individuals (families, friends and kids). These programs are catching attention of the community and the media. We have several eminent leaders from Toronto who support this program. (His Worship former Mayor of Toronto, Dave Miller, Mr. Adam Vaughn, MP of Parliament, Mr. Yvan Baker, MPP, Ms. Donna Cansfield, former MPP, St. George’s society of Toronto and Toronto Police to name a few.)
Vision & Mission
Promote active living for all age groups, through sport, exercise & yoga and promoting environmental awareness within the community. To create a recreational forum where passionate cricketers past their prime get an opportunity to participate in the league, have fun in a competitive yet friendly manner.
Future Plans
Involve expansion of the tournament in coming years for longer periods over a two-week period and to involve more leagues and teams throughout Ontario. There is also plan to formulate a united body to promote this game and establish cricket centres so as to re-establish cricket in Canada to its former glory and to realize Mayor Miller’s dreams to promote, spread and make cricket available to everyone.
To quote Mayor Miller: “Once Canada’s national sport, Cricket continues to grow in popularity among students in Toronto’s schools and communities around the world. It is a game that connects our diverse communities and improves our cross-cultural interaction. Players are offered the opportunity to participate in recreational sports that helps bridge cultural, ethnic and social divides, fosters friendships and enriches the quality of people’s lives”.
Cricket In Canada
It may not be known to many Canadians, even those born in countries, where Cricket is a popular game that Cricket has deep roots in Canada. First played by the British soldiers in the 1800’s, it became such a major sport that at the time of Confederation, Sir John A. Macdonald, and the Prime Minister of Canada proclaimed it to be Canada’s national sport.
The first international competition was a cricket match in 1844 between Canada and the USA. Even during the 1st part of the 19th century, Cricket in Canada and the Eastern USA was very popular, with many top English teams and great players of the day touring North America during that period.
Gambling enhanced the popularity of cricket, which reached such an uncontrollable limit that Congress passed legislation curtailing it in the USA. Fortunately the popularity continued unabated in Canada. There was a strong resurgence in popularity prior to World War II and we are now once again experiencing another resurgence initiated by the vast growth of immigrants from countries that consider cricket as their heritage.
The first documented account of women’s cricket in Canada was recorded on August 16, 1939 when a team from England led by Elizabeth Newton and under the management of Jacqueline M. Preston played a series of exhibition matches at Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto.
There are approximately 6 million Canadians who are avid followers of the game. There are 27 cricket leagues in Canada, which are based in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Quebec. There are 290 clubs and 400 teams that participate in games and 20,000 players and members of these leagues and clubs. Over 120 private and public schools have cricket programs.