A decades-old hockey game at St. Francis Xavier University has officially been cancelled by the student union and university officials.
The BurMac Cup is an annual contest between two on-campus residences. It has been held for nearly 40 years.
But it has also caused problems. In 2002, the game was kicked off campus after more than a dozen seats were damaged at the Keating Centre.
Teams were hoping the game might return to campus later this month, but when some of the conditions to return were being broken, the student union recommended cancellation.
“Definitely wasn't a decision that was made lightly,” said Chad Hasegawa, the student union vice-president of finance. “A lot of thought and consideration, as well as a lot of work from the residents within both Burke and MacIsaac was put towards it. But unfortunately the extreme incidents of a few overweighed the really positives of many.”
It’s a decision that has both players and fans upset.
“We worked really hard to get the game back and it was disappointing to hear a final decision being made on the game 11 days before it was supposed to happen,” said player Colton Deacon.
The question now is whether BurMac will ever return.
“Never say never, but not for the foreseeable future,” said Bob Hale of St. FX Student Services. “I'm all about second chances, but I think we've been through this on more than one occasion and we're going to support the student union and stick with this decision.”
Hale says the university is hoping to do something to show their support for the students at Burke and MacIsaac, but at this time, what that will be hasn’t been decided.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Dan MacIntosh.
