Only two Manitoba football teams have won the Canadian Intermediate Football Championship: the 1952 Norwood/St. Boniface Legionaires and the 1954 Winnipeg Rams. After losing the 1951 final to the Hamilton Panthers 18-0 in Hamilton, the Legionaires returned to the play-offs for the 1952 season. They defeated St. Vital for provincial honours and then won a thriller over the Ft. William Redskins by an overtime score of 30-24 to capture the Tomlinson Trophy (Western Canadian Championship). The Peterborough Orfuns downed the Montreal Flyers 2-0 in a hard fought battle to capture the Eastern title.

People remember the City of Winnipeg hosting the Grey Cup for the first time in 1991, but the first time Manitoba ever hosted a national championship football game of any kind was in 1952. That ‘52 championship game was played on November 22 at the old Osborne Stadium where the host Legionaires beat the Peterborough Orfuns by a score of 31-18 in front of over 7,000 partisan fans. It was Manitoba’s first Dominion of Canada Football Championship title since the 1941 Winnipeg Blue Bombers won the Grey Cup.

Wingback Harold (Hal) Neufeld ran for two touchdowns while George Eakin and Biff Fliss accounted for the others (each worth 5 points at the time). Johnny Warren handled the converts and Grant McPherson rounded out the Legionaires' scoring with a “kick to the deadline” according to the Winnipeg Tribune’s Monday, November 24, 1952 account.

The Winnipeg Free Press of the same date reported that the Norwood/St. B squad captured the Percy E. Robinson Memorial Trophy with a “resounding 31-18 lacing of Peterborough Orfuns” in the first time Winnipeg had held “a Canadian football championship of any description” and the “weatherman cooperated.”

The Legionaires were unbeaten in 13 starts that season and quarterback Pete Petrow led the team to victory. Fellow Honoured Member Arthur U. Chipman, President of the Canadian Rugby Union at the time, made the trophy presentation to Captain Bill Axan.

ROSTER
Bill Axan (End), Ralph Baker (Fullback), Marv Benson (Halfback), Ed Bortnak (Tackle), Myron Budzan (End), Dave Burnett (Tackle), Mike Cham (Guard), Ron Corby (Tackle), George Eakin (Halfback), Ed Finney (Guard), Biff Fliss (Fullback), Walter Futa (Quarterback), Bob Gordon (Guard/Centre), Bob Hammond (Guard), Bruce Hannan (Flying Wing), Paul Hrynchuk (Halfback), Irv Jackson (Centre), Abe Kovnats (QB/Halfback), *Bill Maher (Guard), Ed Mazur (Tackle), Grant McPherson (Fullback), Harold Neufeld (Flying Wing), *Pete Petrow (Quarterback), Jim Robertson (Halfback), Jim H. Robertson (Halfback), Lorne Steenerson (Fullback), Bill Stewart (End), Ed St. Mars (Tackle), Jim Stremick (Tackle), *Gord Sturtridge (End), *Ross Tascona (Flying Wing), *Don Teel (Guard), *Johnny Warren (Halfback), Jack Warwick(End), Harry Fitzgibbons (Coach), *Ernie Ahoff (Coach)

* deceased