TORONTO – The Toronto Argonauts Football Club and Siemens Canada announced on Tuesday that the 3rd Annual Leo Cahill Award for Amateur Football Excellence will be awarded to Notre Dame Secondary School’s Brian Hughes at Saturday’s Argonauts game vs. the Montreal Alouettes at Rogers Centre. The Leo Cahill Award is presented annually to a high school football coach within the Greater Toronto Area who best exhibits the drive and determination necessary to succeed both on and off the playing field. The award is a $10,000 bursary granted to the recipient’s high school football program to ensure the long-term growth of that program.
Brian Hughes is a retired high school principal who now dedicates his time to building the football program at Notre Dame. The Ajax program is entering its fifth season and has enjoyed some tremendous success to date. Showing a commitment to community endeavours, Hughes led his team to work together and raise funds to travel together down to New Orleans and assist with the clean-up from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Revered by his players as more than just a coach, Brian is a teacher and a mentor to his players. Hughes’ Cougars currently have a 3-0 record.
The first runner up is East York Collegiate’s Glenn Edwards. Edwards brought Goliath football back to East York after it was cancelled for many years, including a summer program. East York’s 3-1 football program will receive $2,500 of Fitness Equipment from Advantage Fitness Sales for Edwards’ second place finish. The second runner up is Richview Collegiate Institute’s Al Craigie. Building a championship tradition at Richview is part of Craigie’s legacy at this Etobicoke high school. His 3-0 Saints will see two Argonauts players attend his football team’s practice as a result of the Leo Cahill Award.
“Over the past three years, Siemens has been extremely pleased to be the title sponsor of the Leo Cahill Award,” according to company spokesperson DL Leslie. “It really allows us to connect to the community and it reflects on our philosophy and the importance of promoting our brand through education – it truly is a program that makes a difference.”
Originally from Illinois, Leo Cahill was head coach of the Toronto Argonauts from 1967-1972 and then again in 1977-1978. He was General Manager of the Argonauts from 1986-1988. Under his leadership, the Argos went to the Grey Cup finals in 1971 and 1987. He recruited players including Joe Theisman, Larry Csonka, Jim Kiick, Paul Warfield and current Toronto Argonaut Orlondo Steinauer. Leo also worked as a sports commentator and authored the book “Good Bye Argos” in 1972.
Siemens is one of the largest and most diversified companies in the world, providing innovations in areas such as health care, information and communication, energy and power, industry and automation, transportation and lighting. In Canada, Siemens is a multi-billion dollar company headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, with more than 7,200 employees located in 70 offices and nine manufacturing facilities.
