Tim Worton is emblamatic of what the Joe McDonald Youth Football League is all about. A former player at both the high school and university levels (back when football still existed at Laurentian in the late 1960s and early 1970s), Warton confesses an unending passion to the sport. 

“I’ve always loved the game – and always loved the tyke level”, he says. “They are all so eager – it’s just interesting to try and create a team that actually does stuff by the end of the year.” 

Once again this fall, his team of choice has been the Lockerby Colts, a collection of youngsters ranging in ages from about nine to twelve, with most receiving their first introduction to the game. 

“It does something to me to see them actually developing from organized chaos to an actual team”, Worton laughs. “I don’t even care about winning or losing – it has to be fun.” 

It’s a mantra that carries through the JMYFL from the top right on down. And while league officials will admit that there is the occasional need to reign in a coach or two, they can sleep easy knowing that this 14-year veteran of the Joe Mac Football coaching ranks won’t be among those needing a “talking to”. 

“I think that it’s just such a fantastic league philosophy”, acknowledges Worton. Like most who have played football at some point in time, Worton feels a bond that is unique on the gridiron, somehow not quite the same as other team sports in which he played. 

“There is a camaraderie on the football field that is different than other sports”, he says. While there is a natural tendancy for parents to characterize their child’s likelihood of involvement in football based solely on their size, Worton doesn’t see it that way at all. 

“That’s one of the neat things – watching kids who start to think: “I may be small, but I can actually tackle someone who is bigger than me”” states Worton, pointing out a couple of examples on his 2008 Colts’ roster. 

Like most well-respected coaches, Tim Worton understands how to keep sport in perspective. “I’ve always said that it should be family-school-football in that order. Hopefully, football makes these kids feel good about themselves.” 

Over the span of the past two decades, Worton has worked with far too many fellow coaches and athletes to note everyone. Still, he has enjoyed the pleasure of standing along side coaches Brian Serafini, Steve Junkin, Scott Kirkwood, enjoyed the opportunity to watch the development of a young and very skilled Kyle Kirkwood, who went on to an outstanding career at the University of Ottawa.  

Just talking about his memories of the sport is easily enough to draw the obvious excitement that Worton possesses. Perhaps he summarizes it best of all: “This is where we plant the seed…the seed of enthusiasm for the game of football.” It’s a seed that continues to grow, year by year, within Tim Worton.