NLSA Announces Hall of Fame Inductees and Annual Award Winners
December 6, 2021 (St. John’s, NL) – The Newfoundland and Labrador Soccer Association has announced its 2021 Hall of Fame Inductees and Annual Award winners.
The Hall of Fame Class of 2021 includes five athletes, and one athlete/builder. They include: Blair Aylward, Jeremy Babstock, Scott Bishop, Richard Kelly, Debbie (Hunt) Shortall, and Jeff Warren.
“The Class of 2021 highlights the depth of talent we have seen at the Challenge Cup, Jubilee Trophy and university levels,” said NLSA President Doug Redmond. “This year’s laureates share the common bonds of leading by example, with strong work ethics, and dedication to the sport. Congratulations and welcome to the NLSA Hall of Fame.”
Biographies for the 2021 laureates are below.
The NLSA has also announced its annual awards winners for 2021, as outlined below.
The Hall of Fame induction and annual awards presentation will be scheduled for the New Year.
| NLSA Awards 2021 | ||
| Category | Award Winner | |
| Youth Male Player of the Year | Finley Manning, Feildians | |
| Youth Female Player of the Year | Lauren Rowe, Feildians | |
| Senior Male Player of the Year | Emmanuel Dolo, Feildians | |
| Senior Female Player of the Year | Holly O’Neill, Holy Cross | |
| Coach of the Year | Jake Stanford, Holy Cross | |
| Executive of the Year | Chris Bartlett | |
| Team of the Year | Feildians Challenge Cup | |
| Volunteer of the Year | Bernie Manning | |
| Youth Female Official of the Year | Chloe Chisholm | |
| Youth Male Official of the Year | Taha Odan | |
| Senior Official of the Year | Chantal McDonald | |
| Hall of Fame Inductees 2021 | |
| Blair Aylward | Athlete |
| Jeremy Babstock | Athlete / Builder |
| Scott Bishop | Athlete |
| Richard Kelly | Athlete |
| Debbie (Hunt) Shortall | Athlete |
| Jeff Warren | Athlete |
Laureate biographies
Blair Aylward
Blair Aylward personified what it means to be a leader, with dedication, determination, humility and respect. He led with character and a work ethic that was second to none.
Blair won 13 Challenge Cup championships over 15 years as a player with the St. Lawrence Laurentians, eight of them as team captain. This includes a silver medal and two bronze medals at the National Challenge Cup Championships. During his playing years, St. Lawrence was twice named NLSA Team of the Decade. He also has a silver medal from the Eastern Canadian Masters Championships.
His leadership on the field earned him five all-star selections and a Top Defender award over the course of his career. He was also a finalist for NLSA Player of the Decade. (2000 -2009)
To top off an already outstanding playing career, Blair decided to take up coaching. In his first year, he led the Laurentians to the provincial Challenge Cup championship and was named NLSA Coach of the Year.
Jeremy Babstock
Versatility, leadership and the technical ability to execute in game situations or to explain a technical concept to teammates or the young players he coached, brought him success over his twenty plus years in the game.
With his ability to win and distribute the ball or defend, coaches used him as a defender, midfielder of striker. These abilities earned him all-star selections as a mid-fielder and defender as well as Top Defender and Most Spirited Player Awards. In addition to his individual awards, he was a five-time Challenge Cup champion and a Canada Games silver medalist.
Not to be out done by his playing success, Jeremy also had success as a Head Coach or Assistant Coach with Holy Cross and the St. John’s U-15 and U-17 teams as they captured provincial championships. His proudest moment however, was capturing the provincial Challenge Cup and being named Challenge Cup and NLSA Coach of the Year.
Scott Bishop
Scott Bishop’s career has spanned more than 25 years, 16 of which were at the Challenge Cup level with the St. Lawrence Laurentians. During that period, he established himself as one of the league’s premier fullbacks. His pace and size were ideal for defending and making long penetrating runs deep into the opposing end. His ability to accurately place crossing shots to the ever-dangerous St. Lawrence forwards made him a very valuable asset.
Over the course of his career, Scott was twice named a Challenge Cup all-star as his team captured nine provincial Challenge Cup championships. In addition to his provincial championships, he also won a silver and bronze Medal at the National Challenge Cup Championships. To further add to his success, his St. Lawrence Masters team won two gold, a silver and a bronze medal at the Eastern Canadian Masters Championships.
Richard Kelly
In a career which spanned more than 20 years, Richard Kelly established himself as one of the most dangerous strikers at the Challenge Cup level provincially and nationally. His exceptional touch on the ball made defenders very uncomfortable. Not surprisingly, he racked up multiple all-star accolades and was a three-time top scorer, a regular season MVP and playoff MVP. He was twice named NLSA Junior Player of the Year and once the Senior Player of the Year.
Richard won 11 provincial Challenge Cup championships as a member of the St. Lawrence Laurentians, plus a silver and two bronze at the National Challenge Cup Championships.
Richard excelled in clutch situations and was worth the price of admission for his big game persona and big personality. As an 18-year-old at Challenge Cup nationals in 1999, Kelly scored the winning penalty shot to lead St. Lawrence to the bronze medal in Chilliwack, B.C. Then, in 2002 he captured the hearts of the province with a memorable display of wizardry at the nationals in St. John’s, helping his team to the silver medal. In total, Kelly has scored 18 goals at Challenge Cup nationals.
Debbie (Hunt) Shortall
A career which ran from the mid-eighties to the early 2000’s, Debbie Hunt demonstrated that she was a force to be reckoned with in the St. John’s league, Jubilee Trophy and in Atlantic University competition. She was the ultimate team player and team leader as she captained her Jubilee Trophy and University teams.
As a central midfielder or a central defender, her physical play, intelligence and exceptional technical skill earned the respect not only from her teammates, but her opponents as well. Debbie’s leadership and overall play helped lead three different teams to capture Jubilee Trophy championships and to compete at three national Jubilee Trophy competitions.
At the university level her outstanding play and leadership earned her three successive first team all-star selections while playing for Memorial University.
Jeff Warren
A 30-year veteran of Newfoundland and Labrador soccer, Jeff Warren quickly established himself as an impact player and team leader. This was evident as he was often named team captain of the teams on which he played. His intensity, strong physical play and exceptional technical abilities earned him the reputation as being one of the best in his era. Playing on one of the mid-level teams, he was one of the driving forces as he helped lead his Burin Eagles to two straight provincial Challenge Cups in the early 1990s. After stepping back from Challenge Cup competition, he went on to capture four provincial Masters championships with St. Lawrence.
He was recognized on three occasions as a Challenge Cup all-star midfielder.
