What it means to be an Argonaut fan

[Argo57]

I have been a fan of all Toronto sports teams since I was a very young child (I’m 52 years old now).
My early life consisted of everything Toronto Maple Leafs, a young rookie named Darryl Sittler caught my eye as a very good player, joining the likes of Jacque Plante, Bernie Parent, Bob Baun, Norm Ullman and the like.
My father although a Leafs fan often mention great football players he enjoyed watching Joe Kroll, Bill Symons, Jim Stillwagon etc who played for Toronto’s professional football team, the Toronto Argonauts.
I remember watching a CFL skills competition show called All Pro Countdown and seeing Jim Stillwagon tear up his knee during this show to which he was never the same player after that injury.
Around his time my father finally took my brother and I to our first Argo game in around 1975 or so.
I didn’t know a lot of the rules but one look at the Argo uniforms with players such as Granny Liggins, Jim Corrigall, Gene Mack and the Big Z add Leo Cahill to the mix and I was hooked.
The Argos of that era weren’t very good but there was something about this team I couldn’t shake and so it began.
Years of incompetence and the next Argo saviour yielded little results.
I remember Condredge Holloway arriving in 1981 to give a really bad Toronto team hope but once again they were a bad team.
Despite this on field performance my father decided to get season tickets for the 1982 season (great timing as it turned out).
We didn’t miss a game during what I would consider the golden era of CFL football in Toronto, Bob O’Billovich arrived and holdovers like Holloway and Greer took to the new offence and he rest is history (read Paul Woods book for details of his era).
If the Argos won I would have a great week at school, if they lost I would be truly bummed out until the next game, each day I couldn’t wait to get the Toronto Sun to read up on anything Argo.
One of my best days was finally seeing my hero’s win in 1983, although attendance the following season started to decline my passion for this team and league only got stronger.
World Series championships by the Jays were thrilling but were never as special as an Argo Grey Cup triumph.
As I’ve gotten older and the years have passed I’ve often wondered why the Argos are so special to me?
Much has to do with spending endless nights at the CNE with my father living and dying with the Argos through good times and bad, I would pass on school dances and nights out with my friends to go to games with him.
Special times indeed.
I still call my 82 year old father during each game to let him vent (if the Argos aren’t playing well) or listen to his joy if they are winning!
I also tend to root for the underdog which we all know the Argos are in this market, for years I have defended the Argos and CFL from criticism that they are a minor league team and league.
Now some of my greatest times are spent at Argo games with my son Eric, although we cheer for different teams it doesn’t matter we look forward to time together at the games.
I can be as critical of the Argos as anyone but it comes from a good place in wanting them to succeed.
I feel 2017 will be seen as a major turning point in Argos history (for obvious reasons) and I couldn’t be happier.
Long live the Toronto Argonauts!!!

[Shatto]

Very well said. It was a joy reading your comments about being an Argo fan. Thank you

[Stevoman]

Love the story. I have never lived in Toronto but was always a Leafs fan. The Argos were my chosen football team since about 85 but it wasn't until 1990 and 1991 that they came on par with the Leafs and have since surpassed. I too, defended the Argos and the CFL to all of the NFL only friends that I have and feel like maybe the tide is slowly turning. I've long since loved the team and league and will always be the CFL and Argos first.
This was such a special season and I am so thankful for this past championship. I've watched them win 6 times but this one might just be the sweetest! In addition, this was the first time the Argos were in the Grey Cup when my kids were old enough to watch and follow along. So grateful to be able to have the memory of such an improbable win and have it with my family.

[paulwoods13]

Great story and passion, Argo57. (And thanks for the shout-out!)

[smokeslet'sgo]

I have a pretty similar story to yours although I'm only 27. I was a Leaf fan first, specifically the 1999 Eastern Conference Finals run. I was a pure Leaf fan from that point (around 8 years old) until 2002, when my dad was watching this mysterious "football" sport that I was aware of but didn't really pay attention to. We came back from a family outing and brought back a bucket of KFC chicken and my dad had the game on TV. I was immediately drawn to the blue team's logo and uniform, the Jason logo with the teal/aqua trim. It was the coolest thing I had ever seen up to that point, and I couldn't look away. My dad was explaining the complicated rules to me, and I tried to pay attention but it was difficult. I couldn't look away from those uniforms though. Luckily the team in blue was the Argos, and the game was the 2002 East Semi vs. Saskatchewan. I watched the next game, the East Final in Montreal, and followed as best I could. We got destroyed that game, and I cried, but I was hooked. The next summer I was watching all the games, along with the Blue Jays who I also started really following that year. I was united with a distant cousin that summer, and to my dismay I found out he was a big Ticats fan. To this day he's one of my best friends and we go to all the Argo-Ticat games together. I've never been able to get my other friends on board with the Argos (they're Leaf and Jays guys) but they are happy for me when the Argos do well. They're not football people in general so it's not a pro NFL anti CFL thing. Anyhow I'm getting carried away here, I thought maybe you guys would be interested to know how a 27 year old could be a huge Argo fan. I promise once I'm financially secure I'll be getting season tickets.

[Argo57]

I have a pretty similar story to yours although I'm only 27. I was a Leaf fan first, specifically the 1999 Eastern Conference Finals run. I was a pure Leaf fan from that point (around 8 years old) until 2002, when my dad was watching this mysterious "football" sport that I was aware of but didn't really pay attention to. We came back from a family outing and brought back a bucket of KFC chicken and my dad had the game on TV. I was immediately drawn to the blue team's logo and uniform, the Jason logo with the teal/aqua trim. It was the coolest thing I had ever seen up to that point, and I couldn't look away. My dad was explaining the complicated rules to me, and I tried to pay attention but it was difficult. I couldn't look away from those uniforms though. Luckily the team in blue was the Argos, and the game was the 2002 East Semi vs. Saskatchewan. I watched the next game, the East Final in Montreal, and followed as best I could. We got destroyed that game, and I cried, but I was hooked. The next summer I was watching all the games, along with the Blue Jays who I also started really following that year. I was united with a distant cousin that summer, and to my dismay I found out he was a big Ticats fan. To this day he's one of my best friends and we go to all the Argo-Ticat games together. I've never been able to get my other friends on board with the Argos (they're Leaf and Jays guys) but they are happy for me when the Argos do well. They're not football people in general so it's not a pro NFL anti CFL thing. Anyhow I'm getting carried away here, I thought maybe you guys would be interested to know how a 27 year old could be a huge Argo fan. I promise once I'm financially secure I'll be getting season tickets.

Nice!
The Argos are on their way back in the Toronto market, slowly but surely people are starting to take notice that they are great entertainment value for your hard earned dollar.

[Argo57]

Great story and passion, Argo57. (And thanks for the shout-out!)

Thanks Paul.
I would highly recommend your book to any Toronto football fan, great nostalgic look at a great era in Argo history.

[Bleeds Double Blue]

Thanks Paul.
I would highly recommend your book to any Toronto football fan, great nostalgic look at a great era in Argo history.

I'll second that.

[paulwoods13]

Thanks, guys! The next one, about 1991 (and a bit on the years leading into and after it) will be as good or better, I hope. I've done close to 50 interviews and have about as many more still to do, so this book won't be done until next year at the earliest. I have heard many fascinating stories from many individuals who were part of the most amazing year in nearly a century and a half of Argo football. Stay tuned!

[AngeloV]

Great post Argo57.

[Stevoman]

Thanks, guys! The next one, about 1991 (and a bit on the years leading into and after it) will be as good or better, I hope. I've done close to 50 interviews and have about as many more still to do, so this book won't be done until next year at the earliest. I have heard many fascinating stories from many individuals who were part of the most amazing year in nearly a century and a half of Argo football. Stay tuned!

Yes!!!! You've already convinced me to buy it. This was the era that made me a life long fan!

[R.J]

Argo fans are true diehards IMO, because it's not the easiest thing to be a fan in this market.

[argos1873]

I would say its one of the hardest teams to be a fan of in North America (perhaps the world?). And not because of their on field performance. It is one of the few pro sports teams in North America, that you will get mocked being a fan of, in THE HOME CITY OF THAT TEAM. It takes a very thick skin to be an Argos fan.