1946 – 1949
This is a report from a Fredericton paper that may be the first game the team played under the name Ironmen
Chatham Wins,Ties Against Devon Team
Chatham July 1-(Special)
“Chatham Ironmen smashed out 19 hits , and capitalized on 12 errors by their luckless opponents,to trample Devon Tigers 13-3 in the opener of a Holiday twin bill at St Thomas diamond.Chatham,today. In the second contest,,Tigers tightened up committed only two miscues and the teams came out with a 4-4 draw.
These games were sponsored by the Chatham Amateur Athletic Association which also promotes softball, basketball and boxing in that town. Vincent A Moar is president
Yesterday’s two games provided plenty of excitement for the large umber of fans in attendance.The first game was a loosely played affair with hits and errors galore. Butler, on the mound for Chatham, gave up 8 hits, had 6 strike outs ,walked one and stranded a half dozen Tigers on the paths. The Ironmen staged a batting practice against Leger of Devon and collected 19 safeties. The North Shore team made 5 bobbles and generally gave Butler good support.
Devon got over their stage fright in the final round,came out swinging and rapped McLean,Ironmen hurler for 15 singles. But Chatham wielded a big collective bat themselves and bested Tiger’s Hamilton , roughly spoiling 15 of his best offerings.Both teams played well defensively.”
Hockey and baseball, always the two most popular sports, were in full swing by 1946. The pucksters were competing in the North Shore Hockey League with a line up that included Willie Jardine, Geordie Harris, “Cuffy” McLaughlin, Joe Duffy, Pat Duffy, Vance Tonar, James “Scully” Mills, Joe Breen, Pat Keoughan and Stuart “Sappy” McFarlane. The brave boys of summer were playing in the Miramichi Valley Baseball League and made it to the provincial semi-finals that year but were eliminated by the St. Joseph Villagers.
It was the 1920’s when local newspapers had referred to Chatham’s hockey team as the “little men of iron” but it was 1946 when the hockey team, as well as the baseball team, officially went by the title of Ironmen.
The Chatham Ironmen were even more successful that season. Things however, looked very dismal at the beginning of the summer. As the “Commercial” ably puts it “Chatham Head leading Miramichi Valley Baseball League as they beat Chatham six to five. Chatham is in fifth place.”
By the time autumn and play-off time had rolled around, however, the Men of Iron were in the midst of engineering a spectacular comeback. First they beat out Nelson and then defeated the defending New Brunswick Champs, the Chatham Head Tigers, to become the Miramichi Valley League Champs. Their next step was to capture the North Shore crown. They did so by beating out the Bathurst Red Sox and the Tracadie Eagles. The Ironmen met defeat at the hands of the Arthurette squad while in quest of the provincial title but they were reinstated because Arthurette used an ineligible pitcher. Chatham’s sons of swat then advanced to play the Saint John Cubs in the finals. They beat the port city nine 21-7 and were declared the New Brunswick Intermediate champs.
Later that season they faced Summerside for the Maritime crown Summerside took the series in two straight games 14-1 and 10-9.
All in all it had been a great showing by a team that was a fifth place squad in the early part of the season. The line up of the Champion Ironmen that season was as follows:; John Cable, First Base; Andy “Scully” Mills, Center Field; Art Sutton, Catcher; Whit McMillan, Third Base; Jim Daley, Second Base; Ray Daley, First Base; Frank Kane, Second Base; Don Daley, Left Field; Bud McLean, Pitcher; and Ray Butler Pitcher.