Menu
@
June 30, 2016

Lions in Steeltown for Canada Day Cat Fight

Hamilton, Ontario

The BC Lions have arrived in Hamilton for their first road test of the year as they look to improve to 2-0 for the first time since 2012. It will be a good test against a Tiger-Cats squad that has played in the Eastern Final each of the last three seasons and also represented the division in back to back Grey Cups in 2013 and 2014. Along with a balanced attack on offence, the Tabbies have been known to play some of the more aggressive defence in the CFL during this recent run of success with linebacker Simoni Lawrence, defensive back Johnny Sears and linemen Ted Laurent three players to watch out for. Wally Buono knows if his squad is to escape Steeltown with a victory, they are going to have to earn it. “Hamilton is a different defence,” Buono said. “They’re much bigger inside, they’re linebackers are very very active, and they do weird stuff.” A few more storylines to watch for in the Friday night showdown. On the other side of the ball, Jeremiah Masoli starts at QB after passing for 318 yards and three majors in their 42-20 victory in Toronto last week. Former Argonaut Chad Owens, along with Luke Tasker and Andy Fantuz give the Ticats plenty of options at receiver and running back CJ Gable will provide a good test for the Lions defensive front. The Lions sideline boss is embracing the challenge. “It’s a hostile environment, but that’s what’s going to make the win much sweeter,” he declared.

Special Teams Watch:

After allowing three blocked punts in the first half of last week’s victory against the Stampeders, special teams was a hot topic at practice all week. Chris Rainey put the “Special” back into the Lions unit with his electrifying 72-yard punt return to turn the tide in the 4th quarter, but there is no secret to the fact it must be fixed in a hurry. In Owens and the always dangerous Brandon Banks, the Ticats have a couple of special teams game breakers of their own. The unit is led by charismatic special teams coach Jeff Reinebold.”They understand the urgency of what happened last week,” Buono said. “We’re going to have to weather the storm because Mr. Reinebold will have some things for us. They also have Banks who is a great returner and Ray Early is a good kicker. Like us, they have a lot of explosive weapons.”

Screen Shot 2016-06-30 at 4.15.14 PM

 

Faster Start Required:

The Lions are adopting the right mindset of not savouring last week’s win too much and putting it in the rear view mirror rather quickly. One thing they can still look back on is the slow start, partially aided by those special teams blunders, and focus on coming out better at Tim Horton’s Field. “Sometimes it doesn’t go the way you want, but you have to improve,” Shawn Gore said. “From quarter to quarter and game to game, we’re looking to get better. It’s about having in confidence in what you can do. We started off a bit sluggish last week and we’re not looking to repeat that.

Young Pivots Collide:

Jonathon Jennings and Masoli represent the new era of quarterbacks showcasing their talents in the CFL. Tonight marks their first meeting against each other as the Ticats pivot continues to hold down the fort while Zach Collaros recovers from knee surgery late last season. As for Jennings, he should be even more motivated with upwards of 15 relatives and friends making the trek across the border. Jennings’ mother was raised in nearby Buffalo, NY and his alma mater, Saginaw Valley State, is about a four hour drive from Tim Horton’s Field. “I have a couple of aunts and uncles coming to the game and I think my parents as well,” Jennings said. “They are right across the lake so it won’t be too far of a trek. They are excited about seeing me and I’m excited about playing in front of them.”

Own The Line Of Scrimmage:

Excuse us if we’ve used this one before, but it’s the biggest message Buono has been preaching since the start of training camp. With rookies Charles Vaillancourt and Anthony Johnson starting on the right side of the offensive line, there was some expected growing pains in week one. The entire unit clutched up in the second half and helped engineer their impressive 3:43 drive to kill the clock and seal the 20-18 victory. “It was a great show of character for the o-line and entire team, but now it’s time to turn the page,” Vaillancourt said. “Hamilton has some big defensive linemen and that’s how we like it. It’s going to be a rough game and that’s our job and what we like to do.” It’s no secret they won the other side of the line of scrimmage last week, especially when you consider the big goal line stand when Mic’hael Brooks stopped Drew Tate on 3rd down and Adam Bighill’s big fourth quarter sack to stall Calgary’s final drive of the football game. Pretty much every football game has those two or three plays you can look back on and say played a major difference and the Lions defensive line provided those in the opener.

69-Vaillancourt 01

Other Tidbits: These clubs split two meetings last season with the home team winning each time. The Lions 40-13 triumph over Hamilton October was their largest margin of victory of 2015 and helped cement their spot in the playoffs for a 19th consecutive season… It is a homecoming of sorts for Tim O’Neill, Mike Edem, and Brandon Stewart. “It’s good to be back out here,” Stewart said.  “I made a lot of good relationships with guys on the team, they’ll always be friends but tonight we have to compete.” All three Lions newcomers suited up for the Tiger-Cats in 2015. O’Neill dressed for all 72 games in his four years in Southern Ontario. He and Stewart also suited up for those Grey Cup losses in 2013 and 2014, the latter at BC Place. when they fell 20-16 to the Stampeders. Cody Husband spent parts of three seasons in Hamilton before joining the Lions in 2014. The former Ticats know full well how intense the crowd can be in Steeltown. “The atmosphere on game day is second to none,” Stewart added. “The fans are involved in the game, they know what’s going on and they love their football team. The best way to silence everything is to make plays for my new team.” You can listen to the action on TSN 1040 with Scott Rintoul and Giulio Caravatta. Pre-game at 2:00, kickoff at 4:00. Viewers can tune in on TSN 1 and for those south of the border, ESPN 3 will air the contest.

Download the Lions game roster here

Fan Poll
What area is most crucial for the Lions in Hamilton?
Improved special teams
Vote
Line of scrimmage
Vote
Running Game
Vote
Defence
Vote
Other
Vote

Matt Baker: mbaker@bclions.com