List of Hamilton Tigers seasons
This is an incomplete list of seasons competed by the Hamilton Tigers, a Canadian football team that competed in the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union and Ontario Rugby Football Union. The Hamilton Football Club was formed on November 3, 1869, and was first referred to as the Tigers in a game against the Toronto Argonauts on October 18, 1873, while also wearing black and gold for the first time. They were one of four original teams that formed the IRFU on September 13, 1907, and played in that league for 34 seasons before joining the ORFU in 1948.
In 1941, during World War II, a new team, named the Hamilton Wildcats began playing in the Ontario Rugby Football Union after the Tigers suspended operations due to most of their players fighting in the war. After the Tigers rejoined the IRFU, the two teams were simultaneously competing for the Grey Cup. In 1950, the two clubs merged under the moniker Hamilton Tiger-Cats after it became apparent that both teams would not be able to compete financially in the same market.
Throughout their history, the Tigers won two Dominion championships and five Grey Cups.
| Grey Cup/Dominion Championships† | League Championships | Regular season championships |
| League Season |
Tigers Season |
League | Finish | Wins | Losses | Ties | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1897 | 1897 | ORFU | No regular season | Won ORFU Semi-Finals (Lornes) 2-0 series (47-17 points) Won ORFU Finals (Osgoode Hall) 1-1 series (18-14 points) Lost Dominion Championship (Ottawa College) 14-10 | |||
| 1898 | 1898 | ORFU | 2nd | 4 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1899 | 1899 | ORFU | 4th | 0 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1900 | 1900 | ORFU | 3rd | 1 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1901 | 1901 | ORFU | 3rd | 2 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1902 | 1902 | ORFU | 3rd | 0 | 1 | 0 | Ceased operations after one game |
| 1903 | 1903 | ORFU | 1st | 4 | 0 | 0 | Won ORFU Finals (Torontos) 20–7 No Dominion Championship played in this year |
| 1904 | 1904 | ORFU | 1st | 4 | 0 | 0 | Won ORFU Finals (Torontos) 2–0 series No Dominion Championship played in this year |
| 1905 | 1905 | ORFU | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | Won ORFU Cup, but were not permitted to play for the Dominion Championship |
| 1906 | 1906 | ORFU | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | Won Dominion Semi-Final (Montreal FBC) 11–6 Won Dominion Championship (McGill) 29–3 |
| 1907 | 1907 | IRFU | 2nd | 4 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1908 | 1908 | IRFU | 2nd | 5 | 1 | 0 | Won League Playoff (Rough Riders) 11–9 Won Dominion Semi-Final (TAAC) 31–8 Won Dominion Championship (Varsity Blues) 21–17 |
| 1909 | 1909 | IRFU | 1st | 5 | 1 | 0 | Lost League Playoff (Rough Riders) 14–8 |
| 1910 | 1910 | IRFU | 1st | 4 | 2 | 0 | Lost Grey Cup (Varsity Blues) 16–7 |
| 1911 | 1911 | IRFU | 2nd | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1912 | 1912 | IRFU | 3rd | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1913 | 1913 | IRFU | 1st | 5 | 1 | 0 | Won Grey Cup (TPCC) 44–2 |
| 1914 | 1914 | IRFU | 1st | 5 | 1 | 0 | Lost League Playoff (Argonauts) 0–1–1 series |
| 1915 | 1915 | IRFU | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | Won Grey Cup (TRAA) 13–7 |
| 1916 | Season suspended due to World War I. | ||||||
| 1917 | |||||||
| 1918 | |||||||
| 1919 | 1919 | IRFU | 3rd | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1920 | 1920 | IRFU | 2nd | 4 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1921 | 1921 | IRFU | 3rd | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1922 | 1922 | IRFU | 2nd | 3 | 1 | 2 | |
| 1923 | 1923 | IRFU | 1st | 4 | 1 | 1 | Won East Semi-Final (HRC) 24–1 Lost East Final (Queen's) 13–5 |
| 1924 | 1924 | IRFU | 1st | 5 | 1 | 0 | Lost East Final (Queen's) 11–1 |
| 1925 | 1925 | IRFU | 3rd | 2 | 3 | 1 | |
| 1926 | 1926 | IRFU | 2nd | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1927 | 1927 | IRFU | 1st | 5 | 1 | 0 | Won East Final (Queen's) 21–6 Lost Grey Cup (Beachers) 9–6 |
| 1928 | 1928 | IRFU | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | Won East Final (Varsity Blues) 28–5 Won Grey Cup (Roughriders) 30–0 |
| 1929 | 1929 | IRFU | 1st | 5 | 1 | 0 | Won East Semi-Final (Imperials) 14–2 Won East Final (Queen's) 14–3 Won Grey Cup (Roughriders) 14–3 |
| 1930 | 1930 | IRFU | 1st | 4 | 0 | 2 | Won East Semi-Final (Queen's) 8–3 Lost East Final (Beachers) 8–5 |
| 1931 | 1931 | IRFU | 2nd | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1932 | 1932 | IRFU | 1st | 5 | 1 | 0 | Won East Semi-Final (Imperials) 15–11 Won East Final (Varsity Blues) 9–3 Won Grey Cup (Roughriders) 25–6 |
| 1933 | 1933 | IRFU | 4th | 1 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1934 | 1934 | IRFU | 1st | 3 | 1 | 2 | Lost East Semi-Final (Imperials) 11–4 |
| 1935 | 1935 | IRFU | 1st | 7 | 2 | 0 | Won East Semi-Final (Queen's) 44–4 Won East Final (Imperials) 22–0 Lost Grey Cup ('Pegs) 18–12 |
| 1936 | 1936 | IRFU | 3rd | 3 | 3 | 0 | Lost IRFU Semi-Final (Rough Riders) 3–2 |
| 1937 | 1937 | IRFU | 3rd | 2 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1938 | 1938 | IRFU | 3rd | 2 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1939 | 1939 | IRFU | 3rd | 2 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1940 | 1940 | IRFU | 3rd | 2 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1941 | did not participate | ||||||
| 1942 | Season cancelled (World War II) | ||||||
| 1943 | |||||||
| 1944 | |||||||
| 1945 | 1945 | IRFU | 3rd | 1 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1946 | 1946 | IRFU | 4th | 0 | 10 | 2 | |
| 1947 | 1947 | IRFU | 3rd | 1 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1948 | 1948 | ORFU | 1st | 9 | 0 | 0 | Won ORFU Finals (Beaches-Indians) 2–0 series Lost Eastern Finals (Rough Riders) 19–0 |
| 1949 | 1949 | ORFU | 1st | 10 | 2 | 0 | Won ORFU Finals (Imperials) 1–1 series (26–18 points) Lost Eastern Finals (Alouettes) 40–0 |
| Merged to form Hamilton Tiger-Cats | |||||||
| Regular season Totals (1898–1949) | 165 | 104 | 10 | ||||
| Playoff Totals (1898–1949) | 21 | 10 | 1 | ||||
| Grey Cup Totals (1909–1949) | 5 | 3 | |||||
| Dominion Championship Totals (1897–1908) | 2 | 1 | |||||