Browne, Longstaffe Called to the Hall

Seldom, if ever, was Less Browne caught by surprise during a spectacular Canadian Football League career that saw him retire as the loop’s all-time leader in interceptions.

But when he got a phone call from Winnipeg Blue Bombers President & CEO Wade Miller late last week informing him he was being inducted into the club’s hall of fame, well, he was admittedly momentarily put on his heels.

“I told Wade, ‘You’re giving me chills, dude,’” Browne told bluebombers.com on Monday. “I’m really excited. I never thought it would end up happening in Winnipeg, but that’s pretty cool.

“It feels like I’m joining my old teammates again.”

The Bombers unveiled their 2019 Hall of Fame inductees on Monday, with Browne being joined by long-time team doctor Bert Longstaffe in the builder category.

The two inductees will be honoured at the annual Hall of Fame Game on Saturday, October 12^th when the Bombers host the Montreal Alouettes at IG Field and then feted again at the Legacy Gala Dinner on Tuesday, October 15^th at the RBC Convention Centre.

Browne was already a CFL name when he joined the Bombers, almost by fluke, in 1989. A two-time league all-star in 1985 and 1986 with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Browne had been cut by the Tabbies and then by the Edmonton Eskimos – without even playing a game with the green and gold – before landed in Winnipeg.

“It’s crazy,” began Browne, who was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2002, “but I got cut twice in one year. Hamilton released me with three games to go in the (1988 regular season) and then I got picked up by Edmonton and they released me, too.

“I pulled my hamstring in camp in Edmonton and they thought I was bluffing and they thought they had some kids who were better than me. But before I could even talk to the general manager in Edmonton he told me, ‘Well, you’re not headed home. Mike Riley (then the Bombers head coach) wants you in Winnipeg.

“I was like, ‘Ok, cool. That’s awesome.’”

‘Awesome’ doesn’t even begin to describe his days as a Bomber. Browne was part of a dominant defensive side during his three years in Winnipeg and – how about these numbers – registered 27 interceptions in 51 regular-season games here. The club appeared in three straight East Division Finals during his days in Winnipeg and he led the CFL in interceptions in 1990 and 1991 with 14 and 10, respectively.

The 14 interceptions in ’90 are a Bombers team record and when he retired the 273 yards in interception returns he had that season was a CFL record (since surpassed by three players).

Browne was an East-Division and CFL All-Star in both 1990 and 1991 with the Bombers before being traded to Ottawa in May of 1992 for Gerald Wilcox. He finished up his career with the B.C. Lions in 1993 and was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2002.

Browne would join the Bombers coaching staff in 1999 under Dave Ritchie and spent 1999-2003 as the club’s linebackers coach, before coaching defensive backs in 2004.

“Not too many people think about the coaching part of it, which I really enjoyed,” added Browne, who is currently a supervisor for the Hamilton Roads Department. “It was just my kids lived here (in Hamilton) and I lived there. I had to make a choice. My six years coaching in Winnipeg, I loved it and we were very successful, too.”

Dr. Longstaffe, meanwhile, first began working with the Bombers in 1972 and retired following the 2016 season, ending a 45-year association with the football club.

The Longstaffe family name has a long association with the football club, dating all the way back to the 1940s. A.E. (Bert) Longstaffe served as president of the RCAF Bombers in 1943 while his grandson, Bert, is now being inducted into the club’s hall of fame.

Dr. James Longstaffe, meanwhile, is continuing the family legacy and serves as one of the team’s doctors.