Dick Arends

Richard Arends... sports family (football son Ron)... his family moved to Canada in 1926, first living in Montréal, then North Bay, then Toronto... he tried to join the Armed Forces, but he was turned down due to medical reasons... was married to Violet (Cupit) on 11 February 1939 (thei six children Doug Ron, June, Rick,Larry, Robyn)... Dick and Violet were married for 60 years until Violet died after suffering from Alzheimer’s in 1999)... he was 95 years old when he passed away in Toronto, ON on 5 May 2012... worked at John Inglis... worked at General Electric...

honoured by the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame as a player (one of the first 11 former players honoured as part of The Soccer Hall of Fame’s inaugural Class of 2000)...

with Chicago Viking AA, a USSFA National Challenge Trophy winner (Dewar Challenge Trophy in 1946)...

wrote Ed Fitkin in 1937, “Arends is the best-looking netminder prospect in town. He was good in juvenile company, gets better each passing year, and surely is headed for stardom”... in 1939, received notice from Motherwell FAC Secretary-Manager John Hunter that, “this may be a long war and I see no hope of your coming over here for some considerable time, I wanted however to let you know that we were interested in you. If civilization is to make progress we must break the Nazi regium, our cause is just and we will ultimately prevail”...

as noted in the Toronto Star in 1946, Arends was “considered the best goalkeeper in these parts”... as noted in The Shotgun, John Inglis FC “silent goalkeeper, tall and as agile as a cat who guards the net with such uncanny ability“... wrote the Toronto Greenbacks, “Arends actually appears to stalk a player as a cat does a mouse... his anticipation of an approaching shot on his goal usually finds him waiting for the ball long before it arrives”... wrote Harry Fairfield of 1947 NASFL, Arends was “the cleverest goalie in the league”... as noted in a 1948 Greenbacks team program, Arends was “peer of North American goalies”... wrote Bill Entwistle in 1949, Arends was “known as the prince of netminders”... wrote Ed Waring in 1949, “probably Canada’s best goalie”... as noted in a 1949 program, “needs no introduction to Toronto soccer fans as he has been the outstanding soccer goaltender in Canada for many years”... as noted in his obituary, “his huge hands were the mark of a man who spent many hours stopping shots from some of the best players in the world”...