Last week in the lead up to Touchdown Atlantic I had a chance to interview Toronto Argonauts’ head coach Ryan Dinwiddie.
The Argos have always been the villain in Hamilton, no matter what their record. In fact, Hamilton fans have a special “cheer” that always greets the Argos.
Awesome column!
“the most polarizing city in the country”
I am sure the Argos are the villain in Hamilton but in the rest of the country that is unlikely despite their location in the direct center of the universe as the author clearly suggests.
They may be the best team in the league so far this year but that doesn’t make them a villain across the league. They remain a laughing stock attendance wise and are thought of by many out west only as an afterthought. Winnipeg’s main villain/rival will always be Saskatchewan and vice versa, with some sprinklings of BC as a heated rival like the last two years. In Alberta it will always be those two teams seen by each other as the main villains.
I think it is very hard to be seen as a villain when the Argos have no discernible fan base.
I didn’t have to be told the Argonauts are a villain…
Argos suck in perpetuity…
You’re right, it’s impossible to hate Pinball. I remember a few years back a diehard Cats fan was asked about him. He replied we hate the Argonauts but love Pinball. *
I think most cfl watchers still see Calgary as the villains everyone hates except in Hamilton.
So I don’t think the Argos are the villains more just the grim reaper that is bound to win a grey cup at some point.
You could take a busload of Torontonians and drop them off at centre field and they still wouldn’t know where they were nor what CFL teams plays there. As a person from Toronto said to me, after being asked if she were an Argo fan…“who are the Argos?”
I remember a few years back when a bunch of us in full on Ti-Cat attire went down to Toronto for a game at the old Rogers Center . We stopped into a bar before the kickoff and when we told the waitress that we were here for the game tonight she replied in all seriousness…“oh , who are the Jays playing tonight ?” 
Great column! Pinball is the best. Argonauts should not apologize for this early success though… no one was empathizing when they were 4-14 a few seasons ago, nor during the long drought that mercifully ended with the '83 championship. Edmonton destroyed everyone for years. So did Montreal. It’s still early in this campaign. Wish there were more fans at BMO games, but the die-hards are there (as are the loyal fans of the Cats, Bombers and Riders and others; always a good atmosphere). No other CFL franchise competes in their sports market with a MLB team that has 81 home dates though. Let’s Go Double Blue!
The article is correct about Pinball. He is very inspiring. I met him waiting patiently in line with mostly-Ticat fans,waiting to get into THF a few Labour Days ago. That beaming smile never wavered, and he was always good-natured with everyone. Yup, the only Argo we cant hate here in Hamilton.
Great column! Enjoyed reading all the comments! I love Pinball too. He is an inspiring human being.
One example of why the rest of Canada loves to hate Toronto: some years ago I was working in Calgary and answered the phone at my place of employment with “Good morning, (company name)”. There was a slight pause and then the voice on the line said, in a superior tone of voice, “Well, it’s AFTERNOON here in Toronto.” Oh dear!
As a Stamps fan, Edmonton is the rival. Toronto is and always will be the villain. Their success in spite of a decent fan base only adds to their villianship - it doesn’t lessen it.
Hating Pinball would be like hating Jean Beliveau. You would pretty much have to invent a reason because he’s never given us a real one.