Announcement
THE DUSO LIST OF CHAMPIONS
By FEARLESS PHIL The old DUSO (Dutchess-Ulster-Sullivan-Orange)“city” football league made its debut in 1923 with the five teams that basically comprised it: Poughkeepsie, Kingston, Newburgh, Middletown and Port Jervis. Monticello, a DUSO member in other sports, gave the football league a try in 1926 and 1927 but found the level of play way over its head. Poughkeepsie dropped out after the 1928 season when, after a 13-0 home loss to Port Jervis, some angry Pokip fans went after a Port Jervis man whom they accused of spying on their team during the week. Since the man had driven some of the Port players to the game, fans and players from both schools got into a melee. Police had to give the Port folks a police escort out of town.
The result was an “athletic break” between the two schools. Poughkeepsie chose to leave the DUSO, earning them a lot of criticism even in their hometown. Eight years later (1936) Poughkeepsie returned to the DUSO. The Pioneers’ next hiatus from the league lasted from 1945 through 1950. Then, winning four titles along the way, they stayed put in the DUSO for 15 straight years. After getting pounded in ’64 and ’65, however, the Pioneers again rounded up their covered wagons and left for good. With the DUSO a four-team league again, the first murmurings of shutting down the league could be heard. With only three league games, the DUSO quartet was finding it increasingly difficult to fill out an eight-game schedule.
After the 1969 season Port Jervis left the DUSO for the OCL where the Raiders immediately found an eight-game schedule. Newburgh, Middletown and Kingston kept the DUSO alive for one final season in 1970. Middletown then went independent before joining the OCL in ’73. Meanwhile Kingston and Newburgh headed for the eastern side of the Hudson to play Section One ball until they each headed for the OCL in ’87 once the talk of a state tournament started turning into reality.
Here are the DUSO champions: 1923 – Poughkeepsie 1924 – Port Jervis 1925 – Port Jervis 1926 – Poughkeepsie 1927 – Poughkeepsie 1928 – Port Jervis 1929 – Newburgh 1930 – Middletown 1931 – Middletown/Newburgh (tie) 1932 – Newburgh 1933 – Kingston 1934 – Port Jervis 1935 – Middletown 1936 – Kingston 1937 – Middletown/Newburgh/Port Jervis (tie) 1938 – Port Jervis 1939 – Newburgh 1940 – Middletown/Kingston (tie) 1941 – Newburgh 1942 – Middletown 1943 – Newburgh 1944 – Middletown/Newburgh (tie) 1945 – Newburgh 1946 – Kingston 1947 – Port Jervis 1948 – Kingston 1949 – Newburgh/Kingston (tie) 1950 – Kingston 1951 – Newburgh 1952 – Newburgh 1953 – Poughkeepsie 1954 – Middletown/Kingston (tie) 1955 – Poughkeepsie 1956 – Kingston 1957 – Kingston 1958 – Kingston 1959 – Poughkeepsie 1960 – Poughkeepsie 1961 – Middletown 1962 – Middletown 1963 – Newburgh/Port Jervis (tie) 1964 – Middletown/Newburgh/Port Jervis (tie) 1965 – Middletown/Port Jervis (tie) 1966 – Middletown 1967 – Middletown 1968 – Newburgh/Kingston (tie) 1969 – Newburgh 1970 – Newburgh.
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