The Rural Voice, 1980-01, Page 36The
Young Farmer
A broom,
a ball
and enthusiasm
BY ALICE GIBB
Broomball hasn't been made an
Olympic sport yet, but if it gains popularity
around the world as quickly as it has in
Canada, then that day may soon be
coming.
For the uninitiated, broomball is a game
that's somewhat similar to hockey, only
played with a broom and rubber ball and
shoes, instead of skates, in arenas around
the country. There are two defencemen, a
centre, two wingers and a goaltender on ice
at one time, and most of the icing and
penalty calls are the same as in hockey.
One organization which can be credited
with much of broomballs popularity is
the Junior Farmers, who started leagues
about a decade ago. The appeal of the
game was simple -it was an inexpensive
sport to get into, you didn't even have to
know how to skate, the game was fun and
so was the socia bility which sprang up
around it.
One of the more successful broomball
teams in this part of the country is the
Seaforth BP Dumpers team. In 1978, they
won the Central Western Ontario
Broomball Association (CWOBA)
tournament and went on to be Western
Ontario championships before losing to a
Cornwall team in the provincial finals.
The Dumpers team is interesting for a
variety of reasons. For one thing, many of
the players started broomball as members
of Junior Farmer teams. Since many of
these players ended up staying on the
farm, they moved up to teams in the
Seaforth Broomball league. Today, half the
BP dumpers team is still making their
living as farmers -that is when they're not
playing tournaments around the country or
honing their skills in the Seaforth arena.
The schedule of the sport fits in well with
their farming -the busiest playing time is
the same period when the land work is over
for the year.
Also, the BP Dumpers who are farmers
are all into pigs. As player Neil Murray, of
RRS, Seaforth, says "We did have a
dairyman, but he couldn't take the
pressure." The Dumpers play in the 18 -
The Seaforth Dumpers were CWOBA champs in 1977, and
Western Ontario Champions in 1978. Team members here
showing the paraphernalia of the game are (left to right) Elgin
Dearing, Neil Murray and Jim Henderson. (Photo by Gibb)
team Seaforth League and most have been
with the team for at least three years now.
Although coach Elgin Dearing, who lives
in Egmondville and commutes to his
Hibbert Township farm, said the Dumpers
aren't serious enough yet for tryouts, he
PG. 34 THE RURAL VOICE/JANUARY 1980
admitted the sport is getting much more
competitive of late and that there is some
"under the table" persuasion on the part
of some teams to keep the best players all
in one spot.
The BP Dumpers have 20 men on their