Mr. Mark Arsenault (right of picture), the Athletic Coordinator of the York Region Athletic Association (YRAA), presented the YRAA Varsity Boys Tier 1 Championship Trophy and Pennant to Zora Zakir (left of picture) and Meet Patel (centre) of Bur Oak Secondary School after the Final against Pierre Elliott Trudeau High School on Thursday.
The previous winners inscribed on the Trophy are Alexander MacKenzie (winners in 2005-6, 2006-7, 2007-8), Maple H.S. (2008-9), Middlefield C.I. (2009-10) and Bur Oak S.S. (2011-12 & 2012-13). Pierre Elliott Trudeau won the 2013-14.final.
The YRAA website lists 27 sports in which schools in the York Region compete. Some of the sports involve participation at the Ontario Provincial level by teams from the York Region. Cricket places fifth in the list of sports alphabetically, but does not have very many participating schools at present. Eight schools participated this year.
Mr. Arsenault was appointed YRAA Athletic Coordinator earlier this year. He is a former teacher at Bill Crothers school and mentioned in a brief discussion that cricket is an interesting sport. He would like to see an increase in the number of participating schools, including an expansion beyond the present core of schools that are mostly from the Markham area.
The York Region of Ontario includes Vaughan to the west and extends to Newmarket to the north, Markham being the major city in the south-east of the region. The population of the region is about 1,133,000 according to the welcoming sign on the border with the City of Toronto at the intersection of Steeles Avenue East and Markham Road. About 336,000 people are in the City of Markham according to a separate sign.
So there is scope for the expansion of cricket into other schools in the region and potential to embrace a girls championship, and to expand cricket into the three age brackets for high school sports in York Region. Expansion would depend in part upon volunteer teachers organizing and coaching teams in other schools and might require new cricket grounds or shared grounds that also serve sports such as soccer or rugby. Although the York region includes Township of King, home to the Toronto and District Cricket Association grounds at Maple Leaf Cricket Club.
There is scope for the various cricket leagues in the Greater Toronto Area and the provincial cricket leadership to embrace the expansion of cricket in the York Region, as well as some other regions within Ontario. But various aspects of promoting cricket, ensuring solid sponsors are duly recognized and thanked (a thought underlined by the Canadian Thanksgiving holiday and lost opportunities when major corporate sponsors opened doors to cricket) and the existence of cricketing events and championships continues to require improved promotion and much better efforts by those elected to office at the various levels of cricket to push out news about the outcome of such events.
Alpine skiing, baseball, basketball, curling, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer and tennis that number amongst the sports played in York Region schools certainly attract more sponsors at the professional and amateur levels than cricket in the GTA, Ontario and at the federal level. Diplomacy at the Federal level has brought some recently announced assistance for the Canadian men to prepare for the vitally important World Cricket League tournament in Namibia. Some people within the game will have worked hard to secure this much needed assistance.
The teachers coaching and managing the teams involved in the York Region cricket final thanked Mr. Mark Arsenault for attending the game and presenting the trophy, pennant and medals to the players. Hopefully through education greater enlightenment and harmony can develop in making the world, not just the cricket world, a better place. Enlightenment and wisdom tie in with celebrations of Diwali for many in the GTA, Ontario and across Canada of South Asian heritage at this time of year. Thanks to all who organized, supported and participated in the 2014-2015 YRAA cricket championship.
Eddie Norfolk