Hugh Matheson‘s career in coaching, facilities development, and sport leadership has benefited countless Nova Scotians. After a stellar senior hockey career with the Brookfield Elks in the 1950s and 60s, Matheson turned to coaching in 1967, beginning with the Truro Bearcats of the APC and Metro Valley Junior hockey leagues.
In the next eight years, Matheson led the Bearcats to success on the ice, at the box office, and in the community. In the Bearcats’ first year, they captured the APC League title. The next year, the Bearcats joined the Metro Valley Junior Hockey League and advanced to the final before losing to East Hants. In 1969-70 and 70-71, the Bearcats won the Metro Valley, Nova Scotia, and Maritime junior hockey titles. The 1973-74 Bearcats retained these three titles.
Matheson was an easy choice to head the first Nova Scotia hockey team to play in the Canada Winter Games. The team finished a strong fourth. In 1975, he coached the Canada Games team to a silver medal. Even though he retired from coaching hockey, Matheson was asked to guide Nova Scotia in the 1979 Canada Winter Games where he once again captured silver.
Matheson’s coaching career expanded to senior softball and he became head coach of the Brookfield Elks in 1974. He recognized the talent in the minor system and selected five members of the Maritime junior championship Elks for the senior team. While not a popular move, it proved successful. In 1977, the Elks began an unprecedented run of six consecutive appearances at the Nationals, three of which produced medals. In 1980, the Elks became the only team east of Ontario to capture a Canadian Senior Men’s Softball Championship.
Matheson’s greatest legacy may be the development of the Don Henderson Memorial Sportsplex in Brookfield. In 1972, Matheson operated a one-day hockey school at the Brookfield outdoor rink. Despite starting with a perfect sheet of ice, the sun made it necessary to move the program to a neighbouring lake. At the end of the day, Matheson pledged that the children deserved better and that a new arena would be built. With volunteer support led by Matheson, the Sportsplex opened in fall 1975. Matheson left his job to become the Sportsplex’s full-time manager, retiring in 2003.
• Defenceman Brookfield Elks NS Int & Rural Hockey
• Was 1st Baseman and Clutch Hitter in Softball
• Coached 3 NS Int A Titles from 1965 to 1969, Elks
• Coached Truro Junior Bearcats
• Coached 5 League Titles
• Coached 4 Provincial Championships
• Coached 3 Maritime Championships
• Assistant Coach 1980 Cdn Sr Men’s Softball Champs
• Developed Don Henderson Memorial Sportsplex
• GM Sportsplex 1975 to 2003