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Dr. Joe
Neil Stephenson
Dr. Joe "The Toe" Hanaway, a former McGill kicker, displays limited edition print of Percival Molson Stadium

Men's Rugby Earl Zukerman

McGill rugby team unveils another endowment

MONTREAL – A fundraising project by the McGill University men's rugby team has come to fruition and the program now has its second endowed award. The news capped off a year of celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of the first-ever intercollegiate rugby-football game, when McGill played Harvard in 1874.
 
Starting in December 2025, this new Athletic Financial Award (AFA) will have generated sufficient interest for a $3,500 bursary and the AFA will be presented to future recipients of the Dr. Joseph Hanaway McGill Rugby Gentleman's Award. This recognizes and honours gentlemanly conduct and exemplary behaviour exhibited by a McGill rugby player, on and off the field, over the course of at least two seasons. It is named after 92-year-old Dr. Joseph Hanaway, a McGill football, wrestling and rugby alumnus who graduated with a bachelor of Arts in 1956, followed by a medical degree (MDCM) in 1960. Originally from New York City, Hanaway was a prominent kicker during his playing days, when he was fondly known as "Joe the Toe" and helped the McGill rugby squad win the intercollegiate championship in 1955.
 
"Since the team was founded in 1872, the McGill rugby program has strived to place great importance on how its members conduct themselves on campus and in the community," said head coach Ian Baillie, who has guided McGill to a 76-29-3 overall record in 12 seasons behind the bench. "This is a part of the team's culture and heritage that the coaching staff emphasizes to our players."
 
When initially launched in 2021, the Hanaway Award was a non-monetary prize in the form of a commemorative plaque. Plans were put into motion then to fundraise for an accompanying athletic scholarship, more commonly known as an AFA in Canadian university athletics, which requires a minimum $80,000 endowment at McGill. That fund has now become a reality with donations currently at $117,000, towards a goal of reaching $150,000 by 2027. Previous recipients of the Hanaway Award prior to its endowment were Owen Cumming, Peter Demers, Jack Tucker, Killian Fortier and Philippe Haddad.
 
"I want to thank all our many generous donors," said Dr. Hanaway, who resides in St. Louis, Missouri and has had a distinguished career as a physician, professor, author, volunteer, and philanthropist. "I am deeply honoured that this Award will encourage gentlemanly conduct by our young rugby players both on and off the field for years to come. I am very grateful to Neil Stephenson who has worked so hard to establish and endow this new bursary at McGill."
 
Stephenson, a Toronto-based lawyer, is a former rugby alumnus who graduated from McGill with a BA '84 with Honours in political science and spearheaded the fundraising campaign.
 
"I am especially thrilled that this newly endowed cash prize in Joe's name will be handed out in perpetuity at McGill and will be a powerful social influencer and messenger to the young men on this team, year in and year out," said Stephenson. "I am also deeply grateful to all my fellow rugby alumni and members of the wider McGill Athletics community."
 
Further contributions to the Hanaway Award can be made online at this link.

The rugby team's other endowment, previously announced in May, 2025, is the Karl Fischer Travel Fund, in honour of the late Karl Fischer – a renowned architect and former rugby player and coach at the University – who passed away in 2019.
 
 
SOURCE
Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
514-983-7012 (Tel.)
www.mcgillathletics.ca
earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca
 
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Players Mentioned

Killian Fortier

Killian Fortier

SH
6' 0"
Third Year
3
Jack Tucker

#12 Jack Tucker

W
5' 11"
Fifth Year
4
Philippe Haddad

#16 Philippe Haddad

5' 8"
Fourth Year
5

Players Mentioned

Killian Fortier

Killian Fortier

6' 0"
Third Year
3
SH
Jack Tucker

#12 Jack Tucker

5' 11"
Fifth Year
4
W
Philippe Haddad

#16 Philippe Haddad

5' 8"
Fourth Year
5
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