Labour Day Thoughts

Nearly 45, 000 people packed into Mosaic Stadium on a beatiful afternoon for football on Sunday to watch the Riders and Bombers clash in what I believe was the 46th Annual Labour Day Classic. In the end the Riders came out with a rather convincing 48 - 25 victory. While the Bombers hung around in the first half and actually took a four point lead into the break, the Riders showed their mettle in the second half outscoring the Bombers 34 - 7. In fact the only Bombers score came on a busted play brought on by a poor snap. In no particular order, here are my thoughts from the weekend:

* Darian Durant was on full display Sunday utilizing his legs when required. We all know when DD is able to scramble he is simply a more effective QB. While he threw his first pick of the season (to be discussed later), he countered that with four scoring passes bringing his season total to 22.

* John Chick had what I saw as his best game of the season. There were times he was unblockable.

* I have complete confidence in Christopher Mile moving forward. He is 23 / 23 this year and had plenty of leg to spare in making a 48 yarder.

* Geroy Simon may not have had huge numbers but Sunday was the type of game we all hoped we would get from Geroy when the trade was made earlier this year. While he only had five grabs for 44 yards, three were for first downs and two were for scores.

* Say what you will about Dwight Anderson losing his cool on Sunday. Given what had transpired in the quarter and a half prior I can't say I wouldn't have had choice words for the official as well. Anderson plays with his heart on his sleeve and I can honestly say I love having him on this team. He brings in on every play and while he might talk a lot, he generally backs it up with his on field performance. Speaking of talking, did anyone else see Chad Simpson right in the face of the Riders prior to kick off. I had a chuckle then made sweeter by the Riders ability to keep Simpson almost competely in check.

* The Officials were BRUTAL. The only points the Bombers seemed to score in the first half came about on drives sustained by rubbish calls against the Riders. Dwight Anderson was called for PI simply because the reciever fell back - pedalling. Meanwhile, it what led to Darian Durant's first interception of the season, Weston Dressler was being mauled by one of the Muamba brothers well before the ball arrived. It is so hard to tell what is and is not pass interference anymore. It seems to vary from week to week. Let's add to that the fact that not only do the calls they make leave something to be desired they are not calling a lot of stuff that needs to be. At one point on Sunday, DD gets facemasked while scrambling in the backfield but no flag. On the QB dive by the Bombers late in the 1st half, one of the Bomber linemen came up swining but no flag is thrown. I would seriously hope that Tom Higgins and the CFL is doing something to improve the officiating; if not the quality, at least the consistency.

* The Riders have never been 8 - 1 in their history. Let's still be cautious that the last nine games will be sligthly more difficult as we have BC three times, Calgary one more time in Cowtown as well as an ever improving Eskimo squad twice. (More on them shortly as well).

* Regardless of the schedule we have had and have in front of us, this is a great Rider team that I love watching. Here's to hoping the wonder of the first half of the season carries through to Nov. 24th.

* And things just got a little crazy in Edmonton. One day after nearly pulling off a tremendous comeback against the rival Stamps, Eskimo GM Ed Hervey went OFF. He basically shamed his football team and its coaching staff while singling out Linemen Simeon Rottier saying that he hopes the team never sees him play another down this season. Really Ed Hervey, you want to point the finger. Sure Eric Tillman made some questionable moves but who is responsible for the team on the field now? You! This is no way to motivate a team that is so close to getting a win. Mike Reilly is as tough as nails and this team is getting better each week. Sure they played like hell for three quarters yesterday but I thought showed a lot of composure and maturity by never giving up and fighting right until the final horn. Personally I would think you acknowledge the tremendous finish from yesterday and use that to build on heading into next week's rematch. Blasting the team publicly like that can only cause more problems short and long term. The only coach he seemed to still care for was Kavis Reed who I personally think is part of the problem there. A team that came out the way they did yesterday was clearly lacking motivation and a lot of that needs to fall on the coaches shoulders. In closing, I am very glad to not be an Eskimos fan at this point in time.

* Graham Delaet, you are a beauty. I love the beard, I love his game and I think his results are a true testament to working hard to get to where you want to be. Well done! Can you imagine if he wins the Fed Ex Cup? Weyburn might never be the same.