Semi-professional hockey has a long tradition in Sydney. In December 1912, a group formed a professional hockey club to challenge for the Stanley Cup. The short-lived Sydney Millionaires, who received that nickname because the players were the highest paid in the Maritimes, won the 1913 Maritime Professional Hockey League championship. Their victory allowed them to challenge the Quebec Bulldogs, the then current cup holder, in Quebec City. On 10 March 1913, the Millionaires lost the second and final game of the Stanley Cup, and folded shortly thereafter.