McGill Redbirds and Martlets
| McGill and Martlets | |
|---|---|
| Logo | |
| University | McGill University |
| Association | U Sports |
| Conference | Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec |
| Athletic director | Marc Gélinas |
| Location | Montreal, Quebec |
| Football stadium | Percival Molson Memorial Stadium |
| Mascot | Marty the Martlet |
| Nickname | Redmen |
| Website | mcgillathletics |
The McGill and Martlets (formerly McGill Redmen and Martles) are the athletic teams that represent McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Name
The name "Redmen" was first published in 1928 as "Red Men" and was used to describe the red uniforms worn by McGill sports teams. According to McGill historian Stanley Frost, the name may have also been a nod to McGill's Scottish roots, since Celts were known as "Red Men" for their red hair.[1]
Subsequent 1950s McGill team logos featured Aboriginal Canadian iconography and reports by news sources in the 1950s which refer to the "McGill Indians" in their sports reporting.[2][3] Furthermore, a McGill women's team was referred to as the "Squaws" in the 1960s.[4] Stereotyped Indigenous iconography was on McGill jerseys and helmets until 1992.[5] In a 2018 referendum organized by McGill's student union, 78.8% of 5,856 participating students voted in favour of changing the teams' name.[6] On April 12, 2019, McGill announced that "McGill University’s men’s varsity teams will cease to be called the Redmen."[7] The new name will be announced in 2020-2021 season and in the meanwhile the team will be known as the McGill Team.
Mascot
Since 2005, the mascot for both the Redmen and Martlet teams has been Marty the Martlet. The mascot made its first appearance at the 2005 Redmen football Homecoming game, where it was presented to the McGill Athletics Department by the Student Organization for Alumni Relations.[8]
Football
The McGill Redmen U Sports football team is one of the oldest in all of Canada, having begun organized competition in 1874. The team has appeared in three Vanier Cup national championships, in 1969, 1973 and 1987, with the Redmen finally winning the title in the 1987 game. McGill plays out of Percival Molson Memorial Stadium, where the Canadian Football League's Montreal Alouettes also play.
After their 2005 suspension, the team struggled with three losing seasons, including two winless seasons in 2007 and 2008. The program showed signs of hope as the Redmen won three games in 2009, but soon sank back down to futility with consecutive winless campaigns in 2010 and 2011.
Ice hockey
On March 3, 1875 the first organized indoor game was played at Montreal's Victoria Skating Rink by James George Aylwin Creighton and several McGill University students. In 1877, several McGill students, including Creighton, Henry Joseph, Richard F. Smith, W.F. Robertson, and W.L. Murray codified seven ice hockey rules. The McGill University Hockey Club – later re-christened "The Redmen" – was founded in 1877, arguably making the McGill Redmen the first and oldest ice hockey club in the world.
The university operates both men's and women's teams in U Sports. The teams play at McGill's McConnell Arena. The men's team has won championships in 1883, 1903, 1905, 1912, 1918, 1921, 1930, 1931, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1946, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012,[9] including the 2012 CIS University Cup national championship. The women's team has won championships in 1985, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010.[9]
On November 15, 2003, Kim St. Pierre was the first woman in CIS history to be credited with a win in a men's regular season game. This occurred when the McGill Redmen defeated the Ryerson Rams by a score of 5–2.[10]
Other sports
Lacrosse
Lacrosse was played to a limited extent at McGill as early as 1873. The 15-man McGill Lacrosse Club of 1898 was led by F. L. Thompson (President), R. H. Craig (Vice President), and A. J. Grant (Secretary Treasurer). Numerous American clubs, including Brooklyn, Staten Island, Yale, and Harvard, challenged that McGill Lacrosse Club, but it was impossible to accept on account of approaching exams.[11]
McGill's lacrosse tradition was not re-established until 2001, when a McGill freshman organized a student lacrosse club. In 2002 the team gained Level-3 varsity club status at McGill, and joined the Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association, Canada's premier league founded in 1985. In 2007 the team's status was elevated to a Level-2 varsity team by McGill Athletics. McGill has twice won Canada's national championship, the Baggataway Cup, in 2012 and 2015. McGill competes in the CUFLA East versus Bishop's, Carleton, Nipissing, Ottawa, Trent and Queen's Universities.
Four-time recipient of the Harry Griffith's Award in 2007, 2008, 2012 and 2015, the Redmen have won eight CUFLA East conference titles in 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017. The team has achieved a record of 97–11–1 since 2011 versus Canadian opponents. The hybrid Canadian-box-American-field lacrosse program is geographically diverse with student-athletes recruited from across Canada and the US. The team plays home games in McGill's Percival Molson Memorial Stadium.
Soccer
The soccer program at McGill operates for a big part of the school year. On top of the regular U Sports fall season there is a Quebec indoor season, which runs from January to mid March. Preparation for the U Sports season starts with try-outs in mid-August and several preseason games against NCAA teams.
Sailing
McGill's sailing program was founded in 1949, and the first regattas took place in Northern New England. Today, the team competes in the New England Intercollegiate Sailing Association, which itself is a part of the Intercollegiate Sailing Association and in the Canadian Intercollegiate Sailing Association. The team trains out of the Royal St. Lawrence Yacht Club throughout the fall and competes in dinghies such as the collegiate 420 and the Flying Junior.
Baseball
The baseball team plays in the Canadian Collegiate Baseball Association (CCBA). They have won seven national championships (2006 and 2010 under the old CIBA banner and 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 under the new CCBA banner), and have appeared in two national finals (2005 and 2008). In the 2016 CCBA National Tournament, held at Ahuntsic Park in Montreal, the Redmen went 2–1 in pool play, advancing to the semi-finals where they defeated the Saint Mary's Huskies by a score of 21–0, and then defeated the Montreal Carabins in the national championship game 3–2 on a walk-off home run by catcher Christopher Stanford. This victory marked a three-peat for the Redmen as Canadian National Champions, a streak which has now been extended to five straight national championships. The team plays out of Trudeau Park in Côte-Saint-Luc.
Public image
2005 hazing scandal
In October 2005, the McGill administration cancelled the last three games of football team's season after confirmed reports of hazing involving sexual abuse.[12]
See also
References
- ^ "Origins of the Redmen name". McGill Athletics and Recreation. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
- ^ "The Cougars? The Redmen? Oh, how offensive!". Macleans. 25 January 2012.
- ^ Arsem-O'Malley, Queen (25 March 2013). "Redskins, Redmen, racism?". McGill Daily.
- ^ "Squaws Take On Georgians Today In Hockey Match". McGill Daily. Vol. 50, no. 5. 24 February 1961. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
- ^ Provost's Task Force on Indigenous Studies and Indigenous Education (PDF) (Report). McGill University. 2017.
- ^ Stevenson, Verity (13 November 2018). "McGill students vote to change Redmen sports teams' name". CBC News.
- ^ "Decision about Redmen name". McGill Office of the Principal and Vice-Chancellor. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- ^ Sharma, Mira (29 March 2010). "Marty the Martlet turns one". McGill Tribune. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
- ^ a b "Team History". McGill Athletics and Recreation. Archived from the original on 5 November 2012.
- ^ "Notable Women's Hockey Players". Hockey Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 6 July 2010. Retrieved 9 April 2010.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ McGill Year Book, 1898.
- ^ "Hazing probe prompts McGill to cancel football". CTV News. October 19, 2005. Retrieved February 21, 2012.
