Scheduled to be held from July 30 to Aug. 3, the tournament will feature 27 teams in three age categories, with the title games to take place Monday, Aug. 3, at Gateway Park and Veterans Field.
As the tournament was approaching, last week there was still a call going out for some volunteers and also some players to help a couple of teams round out their rosters. But Darryl LeBlanc, chair of the host committee, said things were looking good for the event.
“We have pretty well everything wrapped up where we need to be,” he said. “We’re on top of everything else and it’s coming along good.”
Fifteen teams will vie for the national title in the 35+ division, including the Yarmouth Coastal Financial Gateways and Tusket Carl’s Store, with the Tier 1 championship game scheduled for Monday, Aug. 3, at 1:30 p.m. at Gateway Park. (There will also be a Tier 2 championship game at 12:30 at Veterans Field.)
There are four teams in the tournament’s 43+ category, including the Canadian Tire Lakers – a Yarmouth team – with the championship contest to be played Monday morning at 9:30 at Veterans Field.
Eight teams will play in the tournament’s 50+ division, including the Pleasant Valley Lakers and Clare 50’s. The title game for this category is scheduled for Monday morning at 10:30 at Gateway Park.
Five provinces will be represented in this year’s national tournament: 12 teams from Nova Scotia, nine from Ontario, three from Alberta, two from Saskatchewan and one from Prince Edward Island.
Tournament action will be spread among five fields: Gateway, Veterans, Tusket, Brazil Lake and Clare. Things are scheduled to get underway Thursday, July 30, at Gateway Park, where opening ceremonies will be held at 5 p.m., followed by a game between the Yarmouth Coastal Financial Gateways and Tusket Carl’s Store.
Having hosted the national old-timers tournament three times before, the Yarmouth area has developed a reputation for putting on a good event, including great hospitality, and LeBlanc anticipates this year’s tournament will be another successful one in this regard. Any proceeds from the weekend will also help support minor baseball in Yarmouth, which has its own big event coming up in September when the U13 AAA baseball Atlantics are held here. Eight teams will compete in that championship.
Given the number of teams coming from away for this week’s tournament, it’s expected to be good for the local economy, and good for people who want to watch baseball.
“All games are free to attend,” LeBlanc said, “so there are plenty of chances to treat the entire family to some outstanding baseball. Plus, the players and their families will be looking for things to do, gifts to buy and places to eat while they are here, so the area will be bustling with tourist activity. It’s going to be a memorable weekend.”
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FOLLOW OUR COVERAGE:
The Yarmouth Vanguard will be covering this week’s national oldtimers baseball tournament and there are many ways you can keep up with our news before our next printed edition.
We’ll be posting updates and photos on our Vanguard website: www.thevanguard.ca.
We’ll be posting updates on our Facebook page: Yarmouth Vanguard.
And we’ll be tweeting out results and coverage. Follow our Vanguard account on Twitter @YarVanguardnews.
Our reporters covering the tournament will also be tweeting from their accounts: @TinaComeaunews and @EricBourquenews.
Live webcasting during tournament
All games played at Gateway Park and Veterans Field throughout the tournament will be webcast by Bell Aliant #CommunityOne. You can visit the event Facebook page: 2015 CNOBF Championships Yarmouth or the event website: www.cnobf2015.ca for live streaming links.
The round robin of the tournament has been organized in such a way that every team will at least play once at the fields where the games are being live streamed from.
The following is the schedule for the 2015 National Oldtimers Baseball Championships.
Visit www.cnobf2015.ca for schedule updates.
THURSDAY, JULY 30
• 5:30 p.m. Yarmouth vs Tusket (35+) at Gateway Park. (The winner of this game will be the team that is indicated in this schedule as N.S. 1. The losing team will be the team noted in this schedule as N.S. 2. The event online schedule will be updated following this game.)
FRIDAY, JULY 31
At Veterans Field:
• 9 a.m. Walsingham vs Petit de Grat (35+)
• 11:30 a.m. Lougheed vs Walsingham (35+)
• 2 p.m. D.S. Braves vs Regina (35+)
• 4:30 p.m. Regina vs Burlington (35+)
• 7:30 p.m. Port Hawkesbury vs Woodslee (35+)
At Gateway Park:
• 9 a.m. Scarboro vs Morell (35+)
• 11:30 a.m. Woodslee vs Richmond (35+)
• 2 p.m. Tillsonburg vs Port Hawkesbury (35+)
• 4:30 p.m. Lougheed vs N.S. 2 (35+)
At Tusket Park:
• 9 a.m. Alpines vs D.S. Braves (35+)
• 11:30 a.m. Burlington vs Alpines (35+)
• 2 p.m. Petit de Grat vs N.S. 1 (35+)
• 4:30 p.m. Richmond vs Scarboro (35+)
At Brazil Lake Park:
• 9 a.m. Lakers vs NS Monarchs (43+)
• 11:30 a.m. Kindersley vs Scarboro (43+)
• 2 p.m. Pleasant Valley vs Monarchs (50+)
• 4:30 p.m. Provost vs Braumeisters (50+)
At Clare Park:
• 9 a.m. Petit de Grat vs Clare (50+)
• 11:30 p.m. Clare vs Oakville (50+)
• 2 p.m. Spring Lake vs Petit de Grat (50+)
• 4:30 p.m. Oakville vs Spring Lake (50+)
SATURDAY, AUG. 1
At Veterans Field:
• 9 a.m. Braumeisters vs Pleasant Valley (50+)
• 11:30 a.m. Scarboro vs Monarchs (43+)
• 2 p.m. Alpines vs Woodslee (35+)
• 4:30 p.m. Monarchs vs Kindersley (43+)
At Gateway Park:
• 9 a.m. Monarchs vs Provost (50+)
• 11:30 a.m. Lakers vs Kindersley (43+)
• 2 p.m. Oakville vs Petit de Grat (50+)
• 4:30 p.m. Spring Lake vs Clare (50+)
At Tusket Park:
• 9 a.m. Richmond vs D.S. Braves (35+)
• 11:30 a.m. Port Hawkesbury vs Lougheed (35+)
• 2 p.m. Braumeisters vs Monarchs (50+)
• 4:30 p.m. Scarboro vs Lakes (43+)
At Brazil Lake Park:
• 9 a.m. N.S. 2 vs Tillsonburg (35+)
• 11:30 a.m. Petit de Grat vs Morell (35+)
• 2 p.m. Morell vs Tillsonburg (35+)
• 4:30 p.m. Provost vs Pleasant Valley (50+)
At Clare Park:
• 10 a.m. N.S. 1 vs Burlington (35+)
• 12:30 p.m. Walsingham vs Regina (35+)
• 3 p.m. N.S. 2 vs Scarborough (35+)
SUNDAY, AUG. 2
• Playdowns and semi-finals being played at all day at all fields based on the results of games from July 30-Aug. 1. Check the event website for updated schedule.
MONDAY, AUG. 3
• 9:30 A.M. 43+ Championship Veterans Field
• 10:30 a.m. 50+ Championship Gateway Park
• 12:30 p.m. Tier 2 Championship 35+ Veterans Field
• 1:30 p.m. Tier 1 Championship 35+ Gateway Park
