1959 Retirements

1959 Retirements

RB Élisée Marchal - Montreal, QC
Teams: Montreal Rouge (1949-1956); Providence Gold Stars (1957-1958)
McCallister Cups: 2 (1951, 1953)
Awards: 3 MVP (1949-1951); Offensive Player of the Year (1953); Playoff MVP (1951, 1953); McCallister Cup MVP (1951)
All-Stars: 6 (1949-1954)
Marchal will leave the NAAF as the best running back the league has seen. He tore up the league in the early years taking home the first 3 MVP awards. He was able to lead Montreal to their two titles in 1951 and 1953 where he earned playoff MVP in both seasons. He took home an OPOY award in 1953 and had 6 All-Star seasons from 1949-1954. After the ‘54 season, Marchal took a step back with the Rouge going into a rebuild and a young RB Scott Mallard-White was coming up through the Rouge organization. In 1957, Marchal signed with the Gold Stars where he would pair up with RB Johnnie Stafford in helping Providence to a 9-3 season. This past year, Marchal didn’t see the field much which ultimately led him to retire at the age of 36. Marchal will forever be a hero in Montreal and I doubt anyone else will be wearing his #25. 

RB Arthur Conner - Buffalo, NY
Teams: Buffalo Blue Wings (1949-1958)
McCallister Cups: 2 (1952,1957)
Awards: Offensive Player of the Year (1955, 1957); McCallister Cup MVP (1952), Playoff MVP (1952)
All-Stars: 4 (1952, 1955-1957)
Captaincy: BUF - A (1957-1958)
Arthur Conner will be remembered very fondly by his hometown crowd. The running back was a centrepiece to their team for the first 10 seasons of the NAAF. His first major breakthrough was in the 1952 season, where he helped the team win their first title in any competition. However, his career really took off as he got older. He won two OPOY awards in ‘55 and ‘57 where he was at the top of the league in rushing categories in both seasons. He would also help the team to their second title in the 1957 season just before he finished out his career this season taking a step back from his dominant play. 

RB Laurent Brazeau - Montreal, QC
Teams: Toronto/Ontario Tigers (1950-1956); Providence Gold Stars (1956); Indiana Victors (1957-1958)
McCallister Cups: 0
Awards: Offensive Player of the Year (1951); Rookie of the Year (1950)
All-Stars: 2 (1951, 1952)
Captaincy: IND - A (1957-1958)
Laurent Brazeau made a huge statement entering the NAAF from the Quebec Amateur League with the lowly Tigers. He had a strong first season in 1950 which earned him the first rookie of the year award that the NAAF gave out. He then made a statement in the Tigers’ first trial game in Kitchener, where he laid a monster stiff arm on DB Lee Wolfe en route to a huge touchdown run. He would take home OPOY that season falling just behind Marchal in touchdowns. Brazeau continued to be a monster down the middle for the Tigers, however, he was never able to get the Tigers anywhere. In his 6.5 seasons with the team, he never played a playoff game. During the 1956 season, Brazeau was dealt to Providence where he would play his only playoff game, scoring a touchdown in a 26-24 loss to Worcester. He would spend his final two seasons with the expansion Victors rushing for 15 more touchdowns over the two seasons. 

K Thomas McFadden - Worcester, MA
Teams: Hartford Hawks/Long Island Hawks/Raiders (1949-1956); Louisville Thunder (1957-1958)
McCallister Cups: 0Awards: 5 Special Teams Player of the Year (1949, 1951, 1952, 1955, 1956)
All-Stars: 6 (1949, 1951, 1952, 1955-1957)
Captaincy: LOU - A (1957-1958)
Thomas McFadden has been the league’s most recognizable kicker over his career. He has reeled in 5 Special Teams awards which is the most a single player has won a single award. He was always consistent throughout his many years with the Hawks/Raiders franchise, however, had been picked up by Louisville before the team won their title this season. He was still able to play in the 37th McCallister Cup game in 1955 with the team. McFadden would serve as one of the Thunder’s assistant captains in his two years with the team, before finally calling it a career.  

WR John Osborn - Watertown, NY
Teams: Ottawa Royals (1949-1952); Providence Gold Stars (1953-1956); Long Island Raiders (1957); Ottawa Royals (1958)
McCallister Cups: 0
Awards: Breakout Player of the Year (1953)John Osborn was not a superstar by any means, but he still had one strong season in 1953 which earned him a breakout player award. The season followed a trade that sent him from Ottawa to Providence where he truly was able to make his mark. However, he was never quite as good as that breakout year, and slowly fell away before playing a season in Long Island and then returning to Ottawa for his last.

Other Notable Retirements
DB Ollie Guy - Worcester, MA - PRO (1949-1954); BUF (1955-1956); IND (1957-1958)
DB Paul Gregory - Markham, ON - TOR/ON (1949-1956); PRO (1956-1958); LI (1958)*DB Dylan Alston - Rochester, NY - BUF (1949-1958)**
LB Mickaël Beaumont - Montreal, QC - OTT (1949-1956)***; IND(1957); OTT (1958)
WR Micheal Mcleod - New Haven, CT - HAR (1949-1952); PRO (1953-1954); WOR (1955-1956); LOU (1957); OTT (1958)
LB Claude Adams - Orchard Park, NY - BUF (1949-1958)**
OL Samuel Weston - New York City, NY - LI (1954-1956); IND (1957); LI (1958)*
OL Bernard Gide - ON (1954-1956); PRO (1956-1958)
LB Leo Davenport - Rochester, NY - PRO (1951); OTT (1951-1957)***; LOU (1958)
DL Garret Mason - Pittsburgh, PA - BUF (1949-1958)**