The fall brought cold weather, and while most students seek the refuge of school buildings for their warmth, a separate group seeks out one building in particular for its perfect sheet of frozen heaven. As the 2003-04 Varsity Men’s Hockey team strolls into Varsity Arena in their personalized Roots Varsity team jackets, their coach explains the extensive travel schedule and immense commitment required to the team. One Blue forward in particular knows how hard it will be to balance his schoolwork, the arduous travel required by his team and his part time job.

The sun shines majestically upon the back campus as the Men’s Blues Lacrosse team suits up for their inaugural game of the 2004 season versus Laurier. Dressed in borrowed Toronto Beaches jerseys, the Blues carry the play while displaying their depth and talent. Midway through the game, a burly man gets out of his car, and after shaking his road weary head, he gets dressed and enters the game. Rather routinely, he does many of the things required to win in lacrosse; he scores, scoops up loose balls, wins faceoffs, intimidates, plays an impregnable defense and leads his team to an easy victory.

It turns out that the Blue forward doesn’t have your average part time job. During the day he’s a student, but some nights he’s the face off man for the NLL’s Rochester Knighthawks. With the Blues having a disappointing season, some are starting to question some players' commitment to team. As the season finishes with 23 points in 24 games, with cross town rivals York going to the national finals, one Blue decides that he’d rather play professional lacrosse.

As rookie head coach Matt Thomas tells his players to take a knee, he explains that despite their attempts at fundraising through pub nights, selling Toronto Rock tickets and various other avenues, the team is still broke. Had they had OUA status, their operating budget would have been $26,000 instead of the zero they are currently receiving. One player is quick to point out that the Varsity team he competed on last year was not forced to drive themselves to games in rented vans as these Blues will be forced to do.

Steve Hoar is the character in both of these stories. While his attitude, work ethic and desire to win have not changed, the funding around him has. This story may seem like another person crying poor at U of T; what difference does it make to the school whether or not a team is or isn’t part of the OUA? Does it mean the players contribute any less because their team is not part of this governing body? Does it make their sport less of a Varsity team? Before you answer yes to those last two questions, ask yourself which sports at U of T receive the most funding, then, of which two you can be the proudest. Certainly football did not come to mind for the latter. The fact remains that at U of T no type of discrimination is tolerated, whether it be race, sexual orientation or religion - sport being the only exception.