The Soccer Hall of Fame welcomes Class of 2012
Footballers Corazzin, Hooper, Neil and Watson amongst honoured members.
The Soccer Hall of Fame has officially welcomed its Class of 2012, honouring Canada’s great footballers at the annual Induction Banquet. The event took place in the evening of 2 June at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto, held on the eve of the Canadian Soccer Association’s Centennial Match. Honoured members included former athletes Carlo Corazzin, Charmaine Hooper, Andrea Neil and Mark Watson.
Also honoured on Saturday 2 June were builders Gordon Arrowsmith (referee) and Angus Barrett (administration), Pioneer Award winner John Richardson, Brian Budd Award winner Gerry Dobson, Organization of Distinction Victoria West, and Team of Distinction Canada’s 1989 Francophone Games gold-medal team.
The evening featured not only the Class of 2012, but many other alumni and notable members of the Canadian soccer community. Members of the 1989 Canadian team that attended the evening were Enzo Concina, Carlo Corazzin, Craig Forrest, Peter Gilfillan, Lyndon Hooper, Rick Jasken, George Mrsic, Norm Odinga, Kevin Reilly, Peter Sarantopoulos, Les Wilson, Francis Millien, and Dr. Rudy Gittens.
Presented that evening were also the two Best XI in 50 Years as selected by The Soccer Hall of Fame. As part of the series of videos shown at the banquet, the Canadian Soccer Association’s centennial Top-10 Moments was shown in full for the first time. The Canadian Soccer Association’s All-Time Canada XI as selected by fans will be unveiled on Sunday 3 June.
The evening was emceed by Mr. Forrest and Mr. Lee Godfrey. This marked the 13th induction class of The Soccer Hall of Fame, with now 79 players, 50 builders and six pioneers honoured for contributions to soccer in Canada.
The Soccer Hall of Fame & Museum was established at The Soccer Centre in Vaughan, Ontario, in 1999 and is dedicated to preserving and researching Canada’s soccer history. The first Induction Banquet took place in 2000. To learn more about The Soccer Hall of Fame and Museum, visit www.thesoccerhalloffame.ca.