1920 in Canadian football

After a four year absence due to the First World War, the Grey Cup was up for grabs once again as a couple of familiar foes battled for the trophy. The Toronto Varsity Blues defeated the Toronto Argonauts. It was the final time these cross-town rivals challenged each other for the Grey Cup.^[1]

Canadian Football News in 1920

CIRFU and IRFU adopted a four-yard Interference rule while the CRU opted for three yards of Interference.

ARFU played games with 12 players per side and introduced the snap-back. The reduction in the number of players was done for monetary reasons as train rates were high after World War I. The CRU would make the same changes in 1921.

The MRFU champion Winnipeg Victorias were unable to field a full team for the WCRFU finals and withdrew from competition. The MRFU wanted to substitute the second place University of Manitoba Varsity team but the SRFU refused to accept the challenge.

As champions of the WCRFU, the Regina Rugby Club issued a challenge to compete for the Grey Cup. The CRU had already established its playoff schedule and was unwilling to make any changes. At the time, the CIRFU champions had not been determined but McGill had already announced that if they won the CIRFU they would not compete in the CRU playoffs. The CRU ruled that if McGill won the CIRFU then the Regina Rugby Club would take the place of the CIRFU in the playoffs. In the end, the University of Toronto Varsity team won the CIRFU and the west had to wait one more year before it could compete for the Grey Cup.

Regular season

Final regular season standings

Note: GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PF = Points For, PA = Points Against, Pts = Points

Interprovincial Rugby Football Union[2] Team GP W L T PF PA Pts Toronto Argonauts 6 5 1 0 54 32 10 Hamilton Tigers 6 4 2 0 48 25 8 Ottawa Rough Riders 6 3 3 0 49 52 6 Montreal AAA 6 0 6 0 35 77 0

Ontario Rugby Football Union[3] Team GP W L T PF PA Pts Torontos 4 3 1 0 60 35 6 Parkdale Rowing Club 4 1 3 0 35 60 2

Intercollegiate Rugby Football Union[3] Team GP W L T PF PA Pts McGill Redmen 4 3 1 0 61 22 6 Varsity Blues 4 3 1 0 77 21 6 Queen's University 4 0 4 0 13 106 0 *Bold text means that they have clinched the playoffs

Manitoba Rugby Football Union

Team	GP	W	L	T	PF	PA	Pts
Winnipeg Victorias	4	4	0	0	66	20	8
University of Manitoba Varsity	4	1	3	0	39	61	2
Winnipeg Tammany Tigers	4	1	3	0	19	43	2

Saskatchewan Rugby Football Union

Team	GP	W	L	T	PF	PA	Pts
Southern Saskatchewan
Regina Rugby Club	4	4	0	0	31	11	8
Regina Boat Club	4	2	2	0	49	36	4
Moose Jaw Millers	4	0	4	0	5	38	0
Northern Saskatchewan
Saskatoon Quakers	3	2	1	0	16	21	4
University of Saskatchewan Varsity	3	1	2	0	21	16	2

Alberta Rugby Football Union

Team	GP	W	L	T	PF	PA	Pts
Southern Alberta
Calgary Tigers	3	3	0	0	50	10	6
Calgary Canucks	3	0	3	0	10	50	0
Northern Alberta
Edmonton Eskimos	2	2	0	0	54	4	4
University of Alberta Varsity	2	0	2	0	4	54	0

League champions

Football Union	League Champion
IRFU	Toronto Argonauts
WCRFU	Regina Rugby Club
CIRFU	University of Toronto
ORFU	Toronto Rowing Athletic Association
MRFU	Winnipeg Victorias
SRFU	Regina Rugby Club
ARFU	Calgary Tigers

Grey Cup playoffs

Note: All dates in 1920

SRFU Playoff

Date Away Home October 30 Saskatoon Quakers 0 Regina Rugby Club 35

• Regina Rugby Club wins the SRFU championship^[4]

ARFU playoffs

Date Away Home ARFU Playoffs Games 1 & 2 October 23 Calgary Tigers 27 Edmonton Eskimos 15 October 30 Edmonton Eskimos 18 Calgary Tigers 8

• Calgary wins the total-point series 35–33. Calgary advances to WCRFU semifinal against Regina.

CIRFU final

Date Away Home November 20 Toronto Varsity Blues 14 McGill University 6

• Varsity advances to the Grey Cup.^[5]

Eastern final

Date Away Home November 20 Torontos 6 Toronto Argonauts 7

• Toronto Argonauts advance to the Grey Cup.^[6]

Western semifinal

Date Away Home November 6 Calgary Tigers 1 Regina Rugby Club 28

Western final

Date Away Home November 13 Winnipeg Victorias Regina Rugby Club * Winnipeg Victorias withdrew from the competition as several players were unable to get time off work for the trip to Regina

Playoff bracket

	Semifinals					Grey Cup final
	CIRFU	Toronto Varsity Blues	14
	CIRFU	McGill University	6
						CIRFU	Toronto Varsity Blues	16
						IRFU	Toronto Argonauts	3
	IRFU	Toronto Argonauts	7
	ORFU	Toronto Torontos	6

Grey Cup Championship

December 4 8th Annual Grey Cup Game: Varsity Stadium - Toronto, Ontario Toronto Argonauts 3 Toronto Varsity Blues 16 Toronto Varsity Blues are the 1920 Grey Cup Champions

References

1. "Grey Cup Memories: 1920". CFL.ca. 2005-09-04. Retrieved 2019-10-09.
2. 2009 Canadian Football League Facts, Figures & Records, Canadian Football League Properties/Publications, Toronto, Ontario, ISBN 978-0-9739425-4-5, p.294
3. "Welcome!". cflapedia.com. Retrieved June 7, 2022.^{[unreliable source?]}
4. "Regina Wins Rugby Championship of Sask. Once More; 35–0". The Morning Leader. November 1, 1920. p. 12. Retrieved June 7, 2022 – via Google News Archive.
5. "Varsity Defeats M'Gill in Final Rugby Struggle". The Calgary Daily Herald. November 22, 1920. p. 16. Retrieved June 7, 2022 – via Google News Archive.
6. "Argos Qualify to Meet Varsity for Honors". The Calgary Daily Herald. November 22, 1920. p. 16. Retrieved June 7, 2022 – via Google News Archive.