Harry George Woolley (4 January 1942 – 23 May 2009) was a Canadian player, coach, referee, manager, scout and advocate for the game of lacrosse. He spent 46 years as a builder volunteering in a total of 72 appointments. His career extended to coaching, refereeing and managing lacrosse teams in Francophone & First Nations communities.
Occupation
Woolley was a Correctional Officer by day and sports enthusiast by night. Woolley worked at Oakalla Prison Farm in Burnaby, BC from 1976 until its closing in 1992. Harry was then transferred to work at the new Fraser Regional Correctional Centre in Maple Ridge, British Columbia where he worked until his official retirement in 2002.
Amateur lacrosse
Woolley's introduction to box lacrosse came by chance when he was invited to play by a group of boys. After he picked up a lacrosse stick and played the game, he fell in love with the sport immediately.
He played high school lacrosse at Burnaby North Secondary school. Woolley also played amateur lacrosse for Renfrew Minor, Burnaby Minor, Burnaby Junior and the Chilliwack Junior A league.
Sorel Titans
Woolley played semi-professional lacrosse with the Sorel Titans in Quebec from 1965 to 1968. Woolley at 23 years of age played under the mentorship of Hockey Hall of Fame legend and Montreal Canadiens hockey player John Ferguson, Sr. Woolley wanted to emulate Ferguson's style as an enforcer and gain notoriety for his cavalier treatment of the opposition. John Ferguson, Sr. was coach for the Sorel Titans, one of six Quebec Lacrosse League (QLL) clubs that played in the 1960s.
Woolley and other QLL players drew crowds of over 3,000 people. Harry became a solid centre forward and was eventually made captain of his team. He was in the top 12 consistently for overall points in the league.
One fanatical fan took his vendetta against Woolley to the extreme. After playing a hard-fought game for the Titans, Woolley was followed by an opposing fan who pulled a knife on him. Quebec coach Rene Cournoyer intervened by tackling the man to the ground and was later credited with saving Woolley's life.
In 1968, Woolley coached the Sorel Titans Jr. club to the Quebec Junior crown. He also found time to referee minor lacrosse in Sorel-Tracy.
Coquitlam Adanacs
Woolley signed with the Senior A Coquitlam Adanacs for the 1969 and 1970 seasons.
Taking after his mentor John Ferguson, Sr., Woolley became known for his on floor antics as a scrapper and drew audiences to watch his anticipated fights. His nickname was "The Woolley Jumper".
Local media in the Vancouver area helped build momentum and interest for Coquitlam Adanacs games by publicizing many of his scraps. Interest in BC lacrosse was high during this period with sell-outs being the norm.
His on-floor rivalry with local lacrosse hero Al Lewthwaite of the New Westminster Salmonbellies is well documented. Woolley had a pre-game note published in the local paper that warned Lewthwaite: "Al be nimble, Al be quick. Don’t get caught by the Jumper’s stick". A legendary brawl ensued between the two of them during the fourth game of the Adanacs vs. Salmonbellies 1969 playoffs.
His red hair and matching temper helped fuel many game misconducts. Woolley went so far making an offer to take on the entire Victoria Shamrocks team including the goalkeeper.
At the end of 1970, Woolley retired from semi-professional lacrosse and focused his efforts on building the game.
Woolley continues to hold the Coquitlam Adanacs' single season team record for most penalty minutes with 174.
Media
Woolley's passion for lacrosse extended to providing a voice to the local media. Before the time of hiring media relations personnel, Harry had the ability to market lacrosse through self-promotion. Sports columnist Glyn Lewis of The Columbian newspaper in New Westminster, BC published an article saying: "Pushing deadline the other day, The Woolley Jumper attracted some mild attention by standing in the line of my typewriter’s return carriage. He wasn’t about to move until he’d been heard".
In 1989, Woolley was a colour commentator for the Burnaby Cablevision Junior A lacrosse team. Woolley worked alongside play-by-play announcer Ernie Blanchard to provide knowledgeable lacrosse analysis. Home games were broadcast on the local Burnaby Cable Television network.
Despite challenges the game had faced, Woolley never gave up believing that lacrosse would one day establish a larger following. He was a vocal advocate to keep lacrosse as Canada's national sport after the House of Commons of Canada debated the issue in 1994.