By Frederick Halley
IN 2018 Royal Canadian Masters (RCM) created history, becoming the first team from Canada to win a softball tournament out of the country when they captured the Pro Cup (Over-50) title, played as part of the New York Softball Cricket League (NYSCL) annual Independence Cup.

In 2019, the feat was repeated by the Toronto Blizzards, who in a masterful display defeated New York Hustlers by seven runs in a pulsating final, played at Seaview Park, Canarsie, Brooklyn, New York.

Toronto Blizzards also turned back the challenge of the New York Softball Cricket League (NYSCL) in last year’s Canada Cup, playing unbeaten in the three-day event, which replaced the Toronto Cup.

Prior to that, Our Own had won back-to-back titles in the Masters Division of the Toronto Cup in 2015 and 2016.

Both RCM and Our Own have since disbanded but many of the players still feature among teams within Canada.

Among the teams featuring in this year’s Orlando Cup, set for March 17-19 in the State of Florida are Toronto Blizzards in the Over-50 category and Maple Leaf in the Over-40 Division. Both teams are confident of emerging victorious in their respective divisions, with Bizzards manager Azeem Khan excited that his charges will get a chance to redeem themselves following a mauling by Guyana’s Regal Legends in Fort Lauderdale.

In an invited comment, Khan was quick to point out that the team will be missing the services of former Guyana and Canadian player Sunil Dhaniram and former Canadian World Cup player Desmond Chumney. The latter, it will be recalled, was clobbered for six sixes in an over by Regal Legends’ Eric Thomas in last year’s final in Fort Lauderdale. He hasn’t competed in the 2022 season.

Khan also pointed out that the players have been working out indoors due to the current winter season but will be ready for action come Wednesday. Former Guyana player Shiv Seeram will once again be at the helm of Blizzards.

Maple Leaf will be led by former Guyana Under-19 player Troy Gobin, who had the unique distinction of topping the batting aggregate for two consecutive years (2021 and 2022) in the Ontario Masters Softball Cricket Clubs (OMSCC) Over-50 Division, representing Pegasus Storm while his deputy is another former National Under-19 player in Eion Katchay.

An optimistic Gobin also feels Maple Leaf are capable of creating a stir in Orland and like Blizzards they have been training indoors for the past few weeks.

Toronto Blizzards: Shivnauth Seeram (captain),Jaimini Singh, Mohan Harihar, Rabindra (Jesh) Parasnauth, Lall (Dingo) Singh, Roy Britannia, Gerard Austin, Shazam (Strike) Baksh, Wally Bacchus, Fazil Rasool, Ramcho (Tiger) Singh, Sohan Singh, Azeem Khan (Manager), Naseer Baksh (President)

Teams: Maple Leaf – Troy Gobin (captain), Eion Katchay (vice-captain), Imran Ali, Chris Vernon, Yadram Bogh, Parbhu Balkaran, Ian Baldeo, Richard Driffield, Troy Lewis

Bunty Sukhu, Orin Oniel, Terry Mathura, Brian Baldeo, Pradeep Polo Singh, Rambo Punwasse (manager)