Goodall Cup

Australian Ice Hockey League trophy

The Goodall Cup is a perpetual trophy that is, currently, annually awarded to the playoff champions of the Australian Ice Hockey League (AIHL). The trophy is named after Australian born player John Edwin Goodall who originally donated the cup. The Goodall Cup was originally gifted to the Inter State Series, which was an annual 3 game series held between state teams, representing a selection of the best available players in each state. It was the championship trophy awarded to the first team to win 2 out of the 3 games in the Inter State Series, that team would remain in possession of the cup until the following tournament. The first evidence of the Goodall Cup having been presented was on 18 September 1911 by VAIHSA President Philip John Rupert Steele Sr to New South Wales Captain Jim Kendall, after being donated by John Edwin Goodall. The modern day version of the cup is instantly recognisable by the distinct single gold band of plaques around the lower barrel portion of the trophy. There are currently three known versions of the Goodall Cup: A 'First Cup' which can be seen in a 1913 photograph, the "Original Cup" that now resides in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, Canada, and the "Replica Cup" that is currently used for presentations and is presented to the players upon becoming the AIHL finals champions.

With the opening of the Sydney Glaciarium, ice hockey matches between Victoria and New South Wales representative teams began almost immediately. As early as 1907, teams from both states met up in the Sydney Glaciarium to play on 5 August 1907 at 10:15 pm. The New South Wales team won the game 3 – 0.

In 1923 a national federation formed and was named the Australian Ice Hockey Association (AIHA). John Edwin Goodall became the first elected president and A. De Long became the first elected Secretary/ Treasurer. The Goodall Cup would become the trophy awarded to the inter state championship. The New South Wales State team would win every Goodall Cup in the 9 years of the national federation being called the Australian Ice Hockey Association (AIHA) from 1923 to 1931.

In the year of 1932 the Australian Ice Hockey Association (AIHA) was renamed the Australian Ice Hockey and Speed Skating Council (AIHSSC) and the Goodall Cup would remain the awarded championship trophy for the national competition. The New South Wales State team would win every cup for the 6 years that the national federation went under this name from 1932 to 1937, by winning all but the series in 1932 that resulted in a tied series. There were cost concerns surrounding the yearly inter state series and some of the players were unable to travel due to not being able to afford the trip. After the national council held a meeting in August, they were undecided about the future of the inter state series and left the decision to the rink managers in Sydney and Melbourne.

In the year 1938, the Australian Ice Hockey and Speed Skating Council (AIHSSC) was renamed the Australian Ice Hockey Federation (AIHF) and became part of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) on 11 February 1938. The Goodall Cup would continue being the awarded trophy for champions of the national competition that remained between Victoria and New South Wales. New South Wales would win the Goodall Cup in 1938 and 1939 before the national competition was interrupted in 1940 by the events of World War II.

In 1946, the national competition recommenced and the series was hosted by Victoria at the St. Moritz Ice Rink located in St. Kilda, Victoria. A record crowd of 5000 people saw the final game of the series on Wednesday 7 August 1946, which resulted in a tie game and a tied series. This tied series resulted in the New South Wales state team retaining the Goodall Cup for 1946 due to having been the previous champions in 1939 before World War II interrupted the competition.

1 July 1952 marked the first expansion of the inter state series with the new inclusion of Tasmania into the competition. The game was played in the Hobart Glaciarium

The Goodall Cup was not contested from 1956 to 1960, where 1956 saw the Sydney Glaciarium close down and in 1957 the Melbourne Glaciarium close down, making it the longest operating rink at 50 years.

In 1977 the Queensland state team won the Goodall Cup, the first time a state team other than Victoria or New South Wales had won the championship. It was also the only time to date (2021) that Queensland has won the championship. The team that year was captained by Thornton McLaren and coached (player coach) by Russ Trudeau and sparked by a 19 year old kid from Burnaby, British Columbia, named Doug Waymark, who won the John Nicholas Trophy as the most valuable player (MVP) of the tournament. The team was composed of eight Aussies, eight Canucks, and one Swiss.

In 1986 the South Australia state team won its first Goodall Cup. It was the only state other than Victoria and New South Wales to win a Goodall Cup since Queensland had won in 1977. Moreover, South Australia won the Goodall Cup again in 1987. In 1993, the Goodall Cup was not contested due to financial concerns. In 1998, the Australian Capital Territory won its first Goodall Cup.

The AIHL was formed in the year 2000 and consisted of 3 teams: Adelaide Avalanche, Sydney Bears and Canberra Knights. In 2002, The AIHL expanded from 3 teams to 6 teams with the inclusion of Melbourne Ice, Newcastle North Stars and West Sydney Ice Dogs. The Australian Ice Hockey Federation (AIHF) adopted the official business name Ice Hockey Australia (IHA) and the Goodall Cup was transferred from the IHA interstate championship to the AIHL and became the trophy given to the winners of the finals series for the newly formed AIHL. The Sydney Bears won the first AIHL Goodall Cup in 2002 in a finals series hosted at the Sydney based Blacktown Ice Arena where they defeated the Adelaide Avalanche.

The Goodall Cup was withdrawn from the AIHL in 2009 by the cup's custodians, Ice Hockey Australia (IHA). It was instead awarded to South Australia in a traditional state vs state tournament held in Adelaide, South Australia in October 2009 as a 100 year celebration of the Goodall Cup. To mark the centenary championship, a single band of gold plaques circles the trophy with each containing the name of each State Team. Those teams that did not participate in the centenary final match have the words "Non participants" under the state name. The original Goodall Cup was retired before the centenary finals and now resides in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. A "Replica Cup" was made for use in the 2009 centenary finals and was the version of the cup that was awarded to the Adelaide state team.

In 2010 the Goodall Cup was offered back to the AIHL, and the cup was accepted by a vote of the members and board. The Goodall Cup has been re instated by the AIHL as its finals tournament trophy and as the prize signifying Australian champions of ice hockey. Adelaide Adrenaline, winners of the 2009 AIHL playoff were engraved into the cup and are also known as the 2009 Goodall Cup champions.

There are two different years where the interstate championship series resulted in a tied series, seeing the Goodall Cup being retained by the previous years winner rather than actually awarded to a champion of the series. These years have been incorrectly recorded as a win in many references to these particular series as well as being inscribed on the Goodall Cup as being victories.

The 'original' cup refers to the longest used version of the Interstate Cup referred to as the Goodall Cup. Inscribed on the bowl of the original cup are the words: "Inter State Hockey Cup Presented by J. E. Goodall" for John Edwin Goodall who donated the cup. The original cup can be seen as early as 1922, where John Edwin Goodall is holding the cup while sitting with the winning Victorian team. This cup continued to be presented as a perpetual trophy. The cup was partially restored in 2004 by the champions at the time, the Newcastle North Stars where the pewter cup was polished and the original wooden single tier mount was replaced with a 2 tier wooden mount. A 3rd larger redwood tier was added to the trophy between the 2004 restoration works and the 2009 large barrel was added. Midway through 2009, the cup was again restored and mounted on a large barrel like base covered in name plates to be ready for the centenary game. This is the cup's current form. This final version of the trophy was retired after being awarded to the players in 2009 and it now resides in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

The Federation agreed to the purchase of a replica Goodall Cup in March 2009 after the "Original Cup" was considered too precious to continue travelling. The "Replica Cup" was created in 2009 and was to be used at all national championships and state association events. The replica cup was first awarded in 2009 to the Adelaide state team in the centenary game. Inscribed on the bowl of the "Replica Cup" are the words: "Inter State Hockey Cup Presented by J. E. Goodall", like the original cup.

The 1995 Goodall Cup series was won by South Australia, defeating New South Wales 3 – 2 in front of a capacity crowd at Ringwood Ice Rink in Victoria, Australia. The previous years champions were New South Wales and the cup was not brought to the 1995 tournament, leaving Ice Hockey Australia needing to provide a substitute trophy. The mock trophy was not well received by the South Australian team and was destroyed and left on top of a caravan, never being brought back to their home in Adelaide, South Australia.