Please click here for the Alumni Registration Form, Tribute to Branks Weekend and London Knights Alumni Reunion.

DON BRANKLEY- A LABOUR OF LOVE

At some time in the early spring of 2008 the time will come that London Knights Trainer Don Brankley will fold his last towel, hand out his last cup of Gatorade and offer his last encouraging word with the London Knights. For Don Brankley (better known as "Branks") the hockey world has become his labour of love.

Branks has been the London Knights Head Trainer for the past 38 years. Over that time he has spent countless hours handing out tape, offering advice, treating injuries, folding laundry, maintaining equipment and helping players prepare for games. Over those 38 years Branks has built a reputation as a perfectionist who maintained a spotless dressing room and willingness to commit thousands of hours to the London Knights Hockey Club. If you ask Branks about his job with the London Knights he simply shrugs his shoulders and says "I just do the laundry".

Branks legacy with the London Knights Hockey Club is not about folding laundry for the players. It is much more than the hours he spends maintaining the players' laundry each season. His legacy will be his years of support he has offered the players who played for the London Knights during his time in London . In his time with the Knights Branks has touched the lives of hundreds of young men who entered the London Knights family at the London Ice House and now the John Labatt Centre . Often times Branks is the first person who meets players joining the London Knights. For years Branks was the gentlemen who would greet new players at the annual OHL Draft. Handing them a Knights sweater and offering a handshake and sincere welcome as they made their way down onto the draft floor. He is always there to help them tie a tie or offer a pair of shoes or golf shirt to a player who has forgotten to bring his.

During his time with the Knights Branks has been available to his employer and his players for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Whether it was a phone call late at night to help a young player deal with homesickness or a call to help deal with a cold or flu, Branks was always at the ready for his players and the team.

During this time he developed a bond with each and every player who has walked into the London Knights dressing room. Ask any player who has ever played for the London Knights over the past 38 years and one topic is likely to come up. "How is Branks doing these days?" . Not many days go by that a former player of Branks' doesn't call the dressing room to say hello, announce the arrival of a new baby or offer news about the new job or new team they have joined. Some drop in every 5 years, others call almost daily to see how their former trainer and friend is doing.

Branks is truly a unique individual. Over the past 38 years he has spent hours looking after all of those around him. Whether it was lending them 5 dollars for lunch, or his car so they could have a car for a date, Branks was always there for his players. Branks giving is not restricted to those one or two individuals in need at the time. For years Branks has bought each and every member of the London Knights a Christmas present. On birthdays he is quick with a card and a gift for every player and co worker in the organization. He has attended countless weddings and funerals for players, friends and co workers from his time with the London Knights. Have a tough day at school, give Branks a call, having a hard time dealing with an injury that won't go away, give Branks a call, having a hard time adjusting to life in the OHL away from your family, give Branks a call. These are the unspoken words of Branks. Always available, always supportive. When he speaks about the London Knights he uses the term "my players, my team". It's a simple statement but one that rings true in the true sense of the words he is speaking. For 38 years this has been a labour of love for Don Brankley and for one final season he will help "his players and his team" as they focus on returning to the OHL Finals.

Don Brankley is a native of Capreol, Ontario and is retiring from the London Knights Hockey Club after the 2007-2008 season. It will be his 39th consecutive year with the team. By far the longest serving employee of the London Knights Hockey Club.