The 34^th Annual Newfoundland and Labrador Sports Hall of Fame Dinner and Induction Ceremony will take place on Saturday, November 3, 2007 in the Foran/Greene Room at St. John�s City Hall beginning at 7:00 p.m. There are no tickets remaining for this event as the sales were brisk and the tickets sold out two weeks ago.

The Board of Governors of the Newfoundland and Labrador Sports Hall of Fame held their selection meeting in mid-February and selected six members to be inducted this year into the provincial hall of fame. William "Bill" Breen of St. John�s; former Bell Islander Mike Kelly who currently resides in Gander; and former St. Lawrence native Tom Tarrant who currently resides in Inverary, Ontario will be entering the hall of fame in the "Athlete" category. Matthew J. Foster, originally of Broughshane, Ireland, now living in St. John�s, and Robert P. Hillier of Mount Pearl will be inducted in the "Builder" category. Former St. John�s native Gordon Clarence Follett, who currently resides in Outer Cove, will be inducted in the "Athlete/Builder" category.

John W. McGrath, Chair of the Board of Governors, said: "It is important to note that all of the new inductees have made a significant contribution to sport in this province and all have outstanding resumes that merit, justify and warrant induction into the Newfoundland and Labrador Sports Hall of Fame. Their achievements being honoured are remarkable and outstanding and the honours being bestowed to the new inductees are a true testament to the superior efforts displayed by this year�s recipients over an exemplary career. They are worthy of the honour."

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Photo #1: William J. Breen

Photo #2: Gordon Clarence Follett � �Athlete/Builder�

Photo #3: Matthew J. Foster � �Builder�

Photo #4: Robert Peter Hillier � �Builder�

Photo #5: Michael D. Kelly � �Athlete�

Photo #6: Tom Tarrant � �Athlete�

Media contact:
Troy Croft, Executive Director
Sport Newfoundland and Labrador
576-4932
troy@sportnl.ca

William "Bill" Breen is one of those rare Newfoundland and Labrador athletes who accomplished the feat of winning two Canadian team championships in two major sports � soccer and hockey. In 1988, Mr. Breen was a member of the Holy Cross squad that won the national Challenge Cup championship for senior amateur soccer. In 1986, he was a member of the Corner Brook Royals hockey team that won the Allan Cup at the senior amateur hockey championship. At the provincial level, Mr. Breen was a member of the 1977 Canada Summer Games Soccer Team and the 1979 Canada Winter Games Hockey Team. Mr. Breen ranks with the finest soccer players to ever perform within Newfoundland and Labrador. He possessed an impressive ability to control and place a ball and was a fearless defender who never shied away from the physical aspect of soccer. He utilized his height and strength and was especially effective in heading balls away from his goal area. From his centre-mid back position, Mr. Breen�s fine passing, often covering a long distance, was a major weapon in his team�s attack effectiveness. Holy Cross claimed 15 consecutive St. John's first division soccer championships after Mr. Breen joined the squad in 1974. As a member of the Holy Cross Masters Team, he has earned five St. John�s titles and three provincial titles. In total, Mr. Breen has eleven provincial soccer titles to his credit. He was a member of the Holy Cross squads that represented Newfoundland and Labrador in the national Challenge Cup championships, earning one gold medal, one silver medal, and one bronze medal. Selected as an All-Star every year of his soccer career, he was also voted Most Valuable Player three times in five appearances at the Atlantic Challenge Cup playoffs. The highlight of his soccer career was being selected to play for Canada�s national junior team at the 1975-76 CONCACAF tournament in Puerto Rico.

Mr. Breen also happened to be one of the best hockey players in the province from the mid-1970s to the late 1980s. He was a solid defenseman with a strong skating ability and a natural talent to "see the ice" and he was often at his best in a physical game, using his size to good advantage. His hockey accomplishments include the 1986 Allan Cup national championship (the only Allan Cup ever won by a team from Newfoundland and Labrador), four Herder Memorial Trophy seasons, and Atlantic and Eastern Canadian senior championships. For his contribution to hockey and soccer, Mr. Breen was inducted into the Newfoundland and Labrador Hockey Hall of Fame and the Newfoundland and Labrador Soccer Hall of Fame.

Gordon Clarence Follett could be called the fastest man who never ran. For 24 years, Mr. Follett was Newfoundland's best race walker, or "heel and toe man", as they were often called. Of 25 categories in which records could be set, Mr. Follett, racing under the colours of the Church Lads Brigade, the Guards, and the St. John's Olympic Club, held 20 of them. On the track, he owns 1,500 metres, 1 mile, 2 mile, 3 mile, 5 mile, and 10 mile. Road records for Mr. Follett include the 3 mile, 4 mile, 6 mile, 15 mile, 20 mile, 25 mile, 3 km, 5 km, 10 km, 15 km, 20 km, 25 km, 30 km, and 50 km. Mr. Follett was also a strong force in keeping track-and-field alive on the executive level. He was chairman of the Road Race Committee for 12 years, after which time he moved into the position of president with the Newfoundland and Labrador Track and Field Association, a position he held for two years.

Mr. Follett also made significant contributions to rowing and hockey. He steered crews for 12 years, winning the Women�s Championship in St. John�s with Central Dairies in the mid 1980s. He also served nine years as president of the St. John�s Coxswains Association. His hockey career began in the mid 1950s, playing in the Mercantile League with Chalker Barnes. In 1963, Mr. Follett was a member of the Chalker Barnes team which won the Mercantile Title. He also won the scoring title while playing with Chalker Barnes. For several years, he served as secretary of the Mercantile League while still playing in the league. In the 1970s, he was the driving force behind the Inner City Hockey League, serving nine years as president. He coached in the league for 15 years and led his teams to an incredible 12 championships � six with Woolworths, five with Labatt Blue Stars, and another with Star of the Sea. In Ball Hockey, Mr. Follett lay claim to five championships in the St. John�s Women�s League and never lost a Women�s Provincial Championship in which he was coaching, giving him four titles. He coached Newfoundland to a silver medal at the 1987 Canadian Women�s Ball Hockey Championship in Calgary. During the next two seasons, Mr. Follett coached Newfoundland to bronze medals at the national championships. While Mr. Follett was more than just a one-sport athlete, race walking was where he made a name for himself in Newfoundland sports.

Matthew J. Foster made a very important and significant contribution to sport in Newfoundland and Labrador over a thirty-three year period. From 1953-1986, Mr. Foster served as a teacher, coach, clinician, professor, and administrator in professional and volunteer sectors at school, club, university, provincial, and national levels. He arrived in Newfoundland from his native Ireland in 1953 to begin his teaching career at Bishop Feild College in St. John's. Mr. Foster�s volunteer work focused on his particular areas of expertise � soccer, track and field, and administration. His chief contribution as a coach was in the sport of soccer, where he was known as an innovator and motivator. Under his direction, soccer became a game of "control and support", of play on the ground more than in the air. Mr. Foster was known as a strict but fair taskmaster who had a knack for getting players ready to play and compete, and for knowing what to say and when to say it as a coach. He worked tirelessly to improve technique and tactics in soccer and track and field, translating the laws of physics into the practical setting for the advantage of provincial athletes and coaches. For his contributions in track and field and soccer, he was awarded an Honorary Life Membership with the Feildian Athletic Association in 1980 and was inducted as a "Builder" in the St. John�s Molson Canadian Soccer League in 1990.

At the administrative level, Mr. Foster served as a member and representative on a number of important committees and commissions. In 1962, he was named to represent Newfoundland on the National Advisory Council on Fitness and Amateur Sport. He was a member of Newfoundland�s Mission Staff at the first Canada Winter Games in Quebec City in 1967 and the first Canada Summer Games in Halifax in 1969. Mr. Foster also served as a committee member on the Report of Special Commission on Sports and Youth Activities, Province of Newfoundland, 1969 and on the 1977 Jeux Canada Games Bid Committee. He was also a member of the former Canadian Council of University Physical Education Administrators and the former Canadian Association of University Athletic Directors. Mr. Foster had a strong influence in the evolution of soccer and school physical education in the province in the 1950s and 1960s. However, he made his most outstanding contribution to the provincial sporting scene during his twenty-two years (1964-1986) as Director of the School of Physical Education and Athletics at Memorial University.

Robert Hillier is one of Newfoundland and Labrador�s greatest builders of amateur sport. He is a man of vision who sees what can be done and achieved when long-term planning and organization is put into effect. As a long-time player and coach as well as an executive member of soccer in this province, he has been involved as a builder for almost 40 years. From 1967-1973, he was president of the St. John�s Commercial Softball League, one of the best senior leagues in the province. He was instrumental in negotiating with the St. John�s Lions Club to put the present Lions Club Park in place in St. John's for softball. Mr. Hillier has made a significant contribution towards the development and promotion of amateur sport, particularly soccer, in the City of Mount Pearl and the province. While serving as president of the Mount Pearl Soccer Association from 1991-1997, several major steps were taken to solidify the financial structure of the organization such as expanding the sponsorship program and establishing a year-end All-Star Weekend for metro area soccer teams. While serving as a member of the Provincial Committee of the Royal Canadian Air Force Association from 1986-1996, the Provincial Air Cadet Sports Day was established by a committee chaired by Mr. Hillier. This sports day continues today as part of the Air Cadet Program.

Mr. Hillier was instrumental in the development of the Mount Pearl Sport Alliance, which uses a collaborative approach for the delivery of sport in the City of Mount Pearl by providing opportunities for participation as well as maximum utilization of facilities and resources. The Province of Manitoba has adopted the Mount Pearl Sport Alliance model and the Province of New Brunswick is currently finalizing their plans for this model. In 1998, Mr. Hillier chaired the Bid Committee that secured the 2000 NL Summer Games for the City of Mount Pearl. Following that feat, he was selected to serve on the Executive and the Board of Directors for the 2000 games which was at the time the largest provincial games in the province�s history with the largest volunteer involvement. In 2000, he raised $46,000 from the corporate sector in six weeks to cover the budget commitments for the National Under 17 Boys and Girls Soccer Championships being co-hosted in St. John�s and Mount Pearl. From 2001-2004, Mr. Hillier served as a member of the Mount Pearl Winter Carnival Board of Directors and set in place a sponsors package that has provided the winter carnival with $100,000 a year for two years running. At the international level, Mr. Hillier chaired the Bid Committee for the 2001 International Soccer Championship. In recognition of his accomplishments, he has received the Executive of the Year Award from the City of Mount Pearl and is a member of the Mount Pearl Sports Hall of Fame in the "Builder" category.

Michael Kelly was a true Newfoundland athlete indeed. With his diverse athletic ability, Mr. Kelly was able to represent four sports in five locations: hockey in Bell Island, Harbour Grace, Buchans, and Gander; track-and-field in Bell Island; baseball in Buchans, Gander, and Grand Falls; and soccer in Gander. However, it was in the sport of hockey that Mr. Kelly really stood out, being amongst the outstanding hockey players of his era. He began his hockey career on Bell Island during the glory days of sports on the island. In the 1960s, he earned three Herder Memorial Trophies while playing with the Conception Bay CeeBees, the Buchans Miners and the Gander Flyers. This made him the first player in Newfoundland senior hockey to win three Herder Memorial Trophy championships with three different teams. Mr. Kelly also won three Newfoundland Senior Hockey League scoring championships. At a time when most centres relied on imports, Mr. Kelly was one of only two Newfoundlanders to win the scoring championship during this period. Alex Faulkner was the other individual.

In 1962, he was invited to the training camp of the Quebec Aces, which was at the time the number one farm club of the Montreal Canadiens. While at the camp, Mr. Kelly was among the lead goal scorers, finishing second to former National Hockey League stars Bill Dineen and Danny Leiwicki. He was offered a pro contract but he elected to return to the Newfoundland Senior Hockey League with the Buchans Miners. In 1966, he was invited to try out with Canada�s National Hockey Team. However, because he was unable to secure a sponsor to pay his salary while playing with the team, he was unable to proceed further than the initial tryout camp. Mr. Kelly�s career was finally capped in April 1983. As a member of the Gander Whitecoats Old-Timers team, he scored the winning goal in the final minute of the deciding game to win the CAN-AM Old-Timers Hockey Tournament in Lake Placid, New York. A survey of top Newfoundland hockey experts conducted in 1994 named Michael Kelly sixth among the top ten hockey players produced by Newfoundland. The Bell Island Sports Hall of Fame recognized his accomplishments by electing him as one of their first inductees in August 1995. In 1999, Mr. Kelly was inducted into the Newfoundland Amateur Hockey Association Hall of Fame in the athlete category and, in 2001, he was inducted into the Gander Sports Hall of Fame in the athlete category.

Tom Tarrant, whose hometown of St. Lawrence is referred to as the "hot bed" of soccer in the province, developed many outstanding soccer players and Mr. Tarrant was considered one of the best ever. He was a member of the St. Lawrence Laurentians which was voted team of the decade in the 1970s. Mr. Tarrant was considered the team's field general as a mid-fielder and always controlled the game when going at full tilt. His dedication to the sport earned him high praise from players, fans and officials of the game. During his time with the Laurentians, the team captured five straight Burin Peninsula Senior Soccer Championships and five straight Provincial Senior Soccer Championships. The team also won the provincial Challenge Cup in 1971. Mr. Tarrant played with the Memorial University Beothucks Soccer Team from 1971 to 1974, and was captain of the team when they won the Atlantic Intercollegiate Soccer Championships in 1973 and 1974. The team placed second in the Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union (CIAU) final at Laurentian University in Sudbury in 1971.

In 1974, Mr. Tarrant captained the team to a fourth-place finish in the CIAU final at Memorial University. The year 1975 was hugely successful for Mr. Tarrant. He was captain of the St. Lawrence Laurentians Senior Soccer Team when they again captured the Provincial Challenge Cup. The team went on to win the Eastern Canadian Challenge Cup and placed second at the National Challenge Cup competition in Calgary. Mr. Tarrant was selected to the Canadian Pan Am Soccer Team, making him the only player selected to the team east of Quebec and only the second Newfoundlander to earn a spot on the team. That same year, Mr. Tarrant received numerous individual awards: he was co-winner of the Provincial Athlete of the Year Award; he was awarded the Richard Perry Memorial Trophy as Athlete of the Year at Memorial University; and he was named to the Athletics Honour Society at Memorial University. In 1976, while on military leave in Newfoundland, Mr. Tarrant again joined the St. Lawrence Laurentians Senior Soccer Team and finished third at the National Challenge Cup Competition in Winnipeg. During his time in the military, he was a member of the 3RCR Royals Soccer Team which won the Canadian Forces Europe Soccer League Championships in 1978, 1988 and 1989. In 1999, he coached the CFB Kingston Soccer Team to a second-place finish in the Ontario Region Soccer Championships. In recognition for his soccer accomplishments, Mr. Tarrant was inducted into the St. Lawrence Soccer Hall of Fame in 2002.