Nearly 30 teams from across southern Ontario took part in the annual four-on-four pond hockey tournament at the Castleton Cup on Monday, February 16, 2026.
“It’s an amazing Canadian day,” said Jeff Turney.
Turney has been a volunteer with the Castleton Sports Club for over 20-years and is a integral part of the hockey tournament.
The fun tournament started on Monday morning when the temperature was hovering around -10 Celsius and by 1 p.m. it was around the freezing mark which made for great weather, but not the greatest for the ice.
Stacey King who has been volunteering for many years said it’s a long day for all volunteers, but it’s a fundraiser for the Castleton Sports Club.
“It’s about friends, family and having a good time.”
Starting at 8 a.m. teams from Huntsville, Whitby, Pickering, Ajax, Clarington, Port Hope, Cobourg, Oshawa, Trenton, Belleville, Peterborough and all parts of southern Ontario took part in the event.
The tournament is called the Castleton Cup, but everyone is a winner and the cup has all the sponsors on it. All of the participants were welcomed to to put their name on the Cup.
“Everybody wins today,” said King.
There were likely more people at the tournament and taking part in it, then there is in the community of Castleton, just north of Colborne.
The Castleton Sports Club is a registered not-for-profit that owns the property where the tournament is held each year.
It’s run by a Board of volunteers and in the winter, if the conditions are right, two hockey rinks, a crokicurl and a shuffleboard rink are available for people and families to enjoy through the winter months.
One of the mottos of the club during the winter months is, “last ones here, please shut off all the lights.
King said throughout the day, a number of people came up to him and said, “this is a very Canadian family day.”
One of the sponsors of the tournament was Flying V Mobile Skate Sharpening owned and operated by Kevin Bernard.
Bernard has a pro-shop at the Keeler Centre in Colborne and also services the Warkworth Arena.
With the mobile skate sharpening unit, he’s available to attend events like the Castleton Cup with his mobile trailer that has everything for skate sharpening.
The mobile trailer has two full-size skate sharpening machines along with equipment for repairs and upgrades.
“I try to be as much of a full service for skate sharpening.”
“It’s my pleasure to do it and I enjoy supporting the community.”
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
