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Crest for the Winnipeg Football Club.Circa 1940
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Before the 1941 season even started, the rules finally got uniformed. The rules from Western Canada were now accepted into the CRU (the pro pass, the rouge rule, and the interference rule). The one catch is that the rules it will be on a one year trial. Even before the 1941 season started, Calgary decided to withdraw from the union. With Calgary out, the Vancouver Grizzlies decided to enter the union along with Winnipeg and Regina. Vancouver's only win this season was on September 15, when the Grizzlies defeated the Roughriders 7-6. Even with Vancouver in the WIFU, the Blue Bombers still won the WIFU championship, when they defeated the Roughriders 32-22 in a three game series. With the win in the WIFU, the Blue Bombers played in another Grey Cup, where they faced the Ottawa Rough Riders again. In the game, Winnipeg went on to win another Grey Cup as they defeated the Rough Riders 18-16 in Toronto.16
Game program for the 1941 Vancouver Grizzlies.Circa 1941
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Due to the war efforts there was no WIFU seasons from 1942 to 1944, but there still was football in Canada and the Grey Cup was still being played for. In the 1942 and 1943 seasons, the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) from Winnipeg lost the Grey Cup to the Toronto RCAF Hurricanes 8-5 and to the Hamilton Flying Wildcats 23-14.18
Game ball used during the 1942 Grey Cup.5 December 1942
Varsity Stadium, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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Program for the 1943 Grey Cup, between the RCAF Winnipeg and the Hamilton Wildcats.27 November 1943
Varsity Stadium, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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In 1945, the WIFU resumed operations but there was no league play that season. Also during that year, the Calgary Stampeders decided to join the WIFU along with Winnipeg and Regina (Vancouver decided to leave the WIFU). In the season itself, the newly formed Stampeders lost to Winnipeg in the championship game 9-6, and Winnipeg once again traveled to Eastern Canada to play for the Grey Cup against the Toronto Argonauts in which Winnipeg had one of the worst defeats in Grey Cup history, when they loss 35-0.21
Roster for the 1945 Grey Cup.1 December 1945
Varsity Stadium, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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During the 1946 season, a rematch was played between the Stampeders and the Blue Bombers. And like the previous season Winnipeg came out on top and won their seventh Hugo Ross Championship and once again went to the Grey Cup to play Toronto again, and much like last season the Argonauts defeated the Blue Bombers to win the Grey Cup by the score of 28-6. The next season (1947), Winnipeg and Calgary met for the third straight season in the WIFU championship. And much like the previous two years, Winnipeg once again defeated the Stampeders, and once again played for the Grey Cup versusthe Argonauts. Much like the past two seasons, Winnipeg was defeated, and Toronto gathered their third straight Grey Cup when they beat the Blue Bombers 10-9.23
In the 1948 season history was made, and it was made by the Calgary Stampeders who went to 12-0 in the regular season. In the WIFU championship, Calgary went on to play the Regina Roughriders in the two-point series in which Calgary easily won the series by the total score of 21-10 and won the first ever N.J. Taylor Trophy which replaced the Hugo Ross trophy. With that win, the Stampeders went on to face the Ottawa Rough Riders in the Grey Cup in Toronto. When Calgary was in Toronto, Calgary fans made the Grey Cup a celebration. Calgary fans were dressed up as cowboys and Indians eating flapjacks for breakfast, and pretty much turned Toronto into a big celebration for the Grey Cup. In the game itself, the Stampeders defeated Ottawa 12-7 and completed one of the greatest seasons in Canadian Football history.24
N.J. Taylor Trophy.1948-2003
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Calgary Stampeders fans, celebrating their Grey Cup victory.27 November 1948
Union Station, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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Before the 1949 season started, the Edmonton Eskimos rejoined the WIFU along with Regina, Calgary, and Winnipeg. With Edmonton in the WIFU, the union processed a 14-game schedule. Also before the season started, Regina officially became Saskatchewan's team and from that point forward, they were known as the Saskatchewan Roughriders. During the season, the Stampeders once again won the Hugo Ross trophy when they defeated the Saskatcheewan Roughriders 22-21 in the two game championship series, and went to their second straight Grey Cup to face the Montreal Alouettes in Toronto. Unfortunately for the Stampeders, Montreal won their first Grey Cup by the score of 28-15.27
In 1950, the WIFU made history by becoming the first union in Canada to play a playoff game under the lights, when the Edmonton Eskimos played the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Winnipeg was not happy that they had to play under the lights and they seriously objected to that idea. In the game itself, Edmonton defeated the heavily favoured Blue Bombers 17-16 and took a 1-0 nothing lead in the best of three series but ultimately loss the series 2 game to 1. With that series win, Winnipeg returned to the Grey Cup.In the 1950 Grey Cup known as the Mud Bowl (this game is metioned as the Mud Bowl because of the heavy snowfall that happened the night before the game, and the less than stellar job of removing the snow with a snow plow which dug up the playing field, the warm weather that melted the snow, and the rain that came during the early part of game day), the Winnipeg Blue Bombers went to play against the Toronto Argonauts. Much like the playing field, the Blue Bombers were sloppy and were easily defeated by Toronto 13-0.
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