Community pride and support. Great fan base and support. Small-town success.
The GOJHL pulled four current and former Cyclones executive members together and when asked to describe what the hockey team meant to them in a sentence, that’s what they came up with.
The storied junior hockey franchise has won a Sutherland Cup and two Cherry Cups after making the jump from Junior C to B in the 1979-80 season and this Saturday the team will celebrate 50 years of hockey in the community located in Perth County. “A few of us have been around for those 50 years and we are still good friends with the guys who played on some of those early teams and a lot of them still live in town. They’re really excited about it, and they have some old friends coming back to enjoy it,” said past president and former player Wayne Long. Listowel is one of the smaller market teams in the league but Long said the small-town feel has been a positive for the team overall but the previous arena was a barrier. “Players recruit players and when you come from a small town and you get some people that like it, they get some friends to come that know the area. With the dressing room we had in the old arena it was hard to recruit players. They’d go to Stratford, Kitchener, Waterloo, and play in big arenas. We had a small one like Elmira did, so it was tough to get players.” He added it is a little easier to recruit. “We are in a brand new facility, we have a beautiful dressing room.”
The Cyclones have always been blessed with tremendous community support, something another past president, Don Annett, said is a direct result of being in a small town. “It helped us in a big way. A lot of people want to volunteer and being a tight-knit team led to businesses being involved. We had an easier time than other teams in getting sponsorships from local companies. They stuck around as long as they could, and some are still sponsoring. It’s been pretty amazing.” Annett and Long were teammates on the 1979-80 Cyclones.
Current team president Greg McNevan said the support this season has been overwhelming. “We just recently went through the sponsorship process, and it’s been amazing to see how many people are involved. We actually have a waitlist right now of nine businesses that want their names on jerseys. Nobody says no. Some people that I talked to who were new in town were just waiting to be asked.” He added the community is excited to celebrate 50 years of junior hockey and local media are also onboard. “Anyone I have talked to is really looking forward to it. CKNX and The Ranch have been advertising it on the radio and an article has gone in the local newspaper.”
Matt Miller, currently the club’s secretary, was also on the Zoom call. Miller has volunteered his time and effort for the club since 1996 and is currently the longest-serving active volunteer. “We have had fantastic volunteer support. Without that, we aren’t the organization we are. This celebration is also a tribute to the volunteers who continue to step up, added Annett.
Listowel takes on Stratford this Saturday night at 7:30 for the Cyclones home opener. “It’s always good having our best friend in town,” joked Annett who added that the day will really be a chance for old friends to reminisce. “It starts with the alumni games in the afternoon from 4 to 7 p.m. Anyone not playing will congregate in the arena hall. We haven’t seen many of the guys from when Wayne and I played. A lot of it will just be getting together, telling some stories, and having some good laughs.” Dressing room tours will also take place for former Cyclones along with some rounds of golf in the morning.
If there are any former Cyclones reading this article who have not heard about the celebration, reach out to Don Annett at donannett@hotmail.com.
