Major Series Lacrosse
Sport | Box lacrosse |
---|---|
Founded | 1887 |
No. of teams | 6 |
Country | Canada |
Most recent champion(s) | Six Nations Chiefs |
Official website | [1] |
Major Series Lacrosse (MSL) is a Senior A box lacrosse league based in Ontario, Canada sanctioned by the Ontario Lacrosse Association. Most of the star players in the league play or have played in the National Lacrosse League. Each year, the playoff teams battle for the right to compete against the Western Lacrosse Association champion for the Mann Cup every September. The championship is hosted alternately between Ontario and British Columbia every year.
History
Field Era
Major Series Lacrosse originated in the late 19th century as the Canadian Lacrosse Association. In its early days, it had competition from the semi-professional National Lacrosse Union that ran from around 1880 until around 1920 with teams in the Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal markets. In the early 20th century the CLA had another rival league, the Dominion Lacrosse Association in much of the same markets as the NLU. In these early days, all lacrosse was field lacrosse. Early powerhouses in the league were the Orangeville Dufferins (1890s) and the St. Catharines Athletics (1900s and 1910s).
In 1913, the CLA became the Ontario Amateur Lacrosse Association. The league had a Western Division with teams in Toronto and the Golden Horseshoe and an Eastern Division with teams in the Ottawa District, but a year later the Ottawa teams left the league. In 1920, the NLU had dropped to 3 teams and elected to disband. The OALA was left as the only Senior A league in Ontario and only had to face the Ontario Intermediate A champion for a berth into the Mann Cup National Senior championships.
In 1926, an OALA team won its first
Indoor Era
The Mimico Mountaineers would defeat the Fergus Thistles 2-games-to-1 to become the first Ontario Senior A box lacrosse champions. They would later host the Winnipeg Argos at Maple Leaf Gardens and win the first ever indoor Mann Cup 2-games-to-none.
The Orillia Terriers would be the most dominant OALA team in the 1930s, winning four straight OALA title (1934-1937) and three consecutive Mann Cup (1934-1936) becoming the first team of the Indoor Era to accomplish that streak.
In 1939, the league became the Ontario Lacrosse Association Senior A League (OLA).
The St. Catharines Athletics found their stride in 1938 and would win the OLA seven times in nine seasons (losing 1942 and 1943 to Brampton). The Athletics would be National Champions five times in that span, beating the New Westminster Adanacs 3-games-to-none in 1938, the Vancouver Burrards 3-games-to-1 in 1940, the Richmond Farmers 3-games-to-2 in 1941, the New Westminster Salmonbellies 3-games-to-2 in 1944 and the 'Bellies again in 1946 3-games-to-none.
In 1951, the core of the 1950
Teams
Team | Joined | Centre |
---|---|---|
Brampton Excelsiors | c. 1887 | Brampton
|
Brooklin Lacrosse Club | 1961 | Brooklin |
Cobourg Kodiaks | 2016 | Cobourg
|
Oakville Rock | 2010 | Oakville |
Peterborough Lakers | 1949 | Peterborough |
Six Nations Chiefs | 1993 | Hagersville |
All-Star Game
During the 2012 MSL Entry Draft, the league announced it would be holding its first ever All-Star Game. Peterborough was set to host, citing average attendance as the driving factor.[1] However, in April that same year, the game was cancelled due to two major issues. The first was concern of unnecessary risk of injury and the other was the distribution of revenue.[2]
Champions
Defunct teams
- Aurora Astros
- Akwesasne Thunder
- Barrie Lakeshores
- Brantford Warriors
- Buffalo Gamblers
- Fergus Thistles
- Hastings Legionnaires
- Huntsville Hawks
- Kitchener-Waterloo Kodiaks
- Mississauga Renegades
- Mississauga Braves
- Niagara Falls Gamblers
- Orangeville Northmen
- Oshweken Wolves
- Owen Sound North Stars
- Sarnia Lumley Wrecking
- Scarborough Saints
- St. Catharines Athletics
- St. Regis Indians
- Toronto Shooting Stars
- Toronto Maple Leafs
- Windsor Warlocks
See also
References
- ^ "MSL news: Suitor to Peterborough, two divisions for 2012 and an All-Star Game". Inside Lacrosse. 29 January 2012. Archived from the original on 25 July 2014. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
- ^ "All-star lacrosse game set for Peterborough cancelled". Peterborough Examiner. 22 April 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
- ^ "Second consecutive Mann Cup for Six Nations Chiefs". Aboriginal Multi-Media Society. September 2014.