The Chicago Cardinals–Toronto Argonauts exhibition game of August 5, 1959 was the inaugural game of Toronto's

Exhibition Stadium Canadian National Exhibition Stadium (commonly known as Exhibition Stadium or CNE Stadium) was a multi-purpose stadium that formerly stood on the Exhibition Place grounds, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Originally built for Canadian National E ...

and the first game a

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

team played in the city. It was also the first NFL-CFL exhibition match held since the establishment of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

in 1958, and marked the beginning of a three-year, four game exhibition series between the leagues. The game was played with a mixture of Canadian and American rules. The field featured the larger Canadian dimensions but there were only eleven rather than twelve men a side, as in the NFL; fewer men on a larger surface helped ensure a high scoring game. NFL-style was adopted for down field blocking but it was CFL rules on kicks and returns and the American

fair catch A fair catch is a feature of American football and several other codes of football, in which a player attempting to catch a ball kicked by the opposing team – either on a kickoff or punt – is entitled to catch the ball without interference f ...

rule did not apply. The

Cardinals Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

were lopsided victors in the game, 55-26. The

Argonauts The Argonauts (; Ancient Greek: ) were a band of heroes in Greek mythology, who in the years before the Trojan War (around 1300 BC) accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece. Their name comes from their ship, '' Argo'', ...

did surprise by opening up an early 13-1 lead on the strength of a 70-yard interception return by Bob Dehlinger, but the Cardinal's superior weight and blocking won the day. Eight different Cardinals scored touchdowns and four quarterbacks saw action. Cardinals' coach Frank "Pop" Ivy was intimately familiar with the Canadian game, having coached the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Commo ...

, which gave an advantage to the American squad. Reported to outweigh the Argonauts by an average of twenty pounds, and with specialists at each position, the Cardinals left their Canadian rivals wounded. Four Argos were injured in the contest, including star

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

Norm Stoneburgh and Don Caraway, an anchor on the defensive line.

Reception and aftermath

The game generated enormous interest in the city of Toronto. A total of 27,770 attended, smashing the record for a crowd at an exhibition game in Canada. Before the game few in Toronto had given the Argonauts much of a chance, while post-game reports dwelled on the injuries suffered and the massive traffic snarls the game had created. Given the success at the gate, the Argonauts arranged further games in 1960 and 1961; both were lopsided losses and there were suggestions the team was putting money ahead of the health of its players. Both the Cardinals and Argonauts went on to have dismal seasons going 2-10 and 4-10, respectively By 1960 the Cardinals had moved to St. Louis.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chicago Cardinals-Toronto Argonauts exhibition game Chicago Cardinals Toronto Argonauts National Football League games 1950s in Toronto 1959 in American football 1959 in Canadian football August 1959 sports events in Canada

Reception and aftermath

See also

References