Mike Beamish
Vancouver Sun
TORONTO -- Lions cornerback Dante Marsh suffered a groin injury and had to be removed from Friday's 24-20 loss to the Argos, after it appeared he got the worst of it when trying to tackle Toronto's thundering running back Cory Boyd. That's not exactly the way it happened, Marsh explained later.
"It had nothing to do with that," Marsh said. "It happened on the play before that. But I won't use my injury as an excuse. All these guys we've got are good enough. I'm not using that excuse [his injury] why we lost. Those guys [Argos] made more plays than we did."
The Lions switched rookie Stanley Franks from halfback to play Marsh's corner position with another rookie, Anthony Reddick, playing halfback for Franks.
Reddick had the distinction of making the Lions' first interception this season -- and his first as a pro -- but he took little comfort in that knowledge.
"All that goes down the drain when you don't win the game," he said.
Reddick twice had to leave the game with minor injuries, one time after when he tried to make a tackle on Boyd and got whacked in the throat. Boyd finished the game with 148 yards rushing on 19 carries, the third straight game in which he has rushed for more than 100 yards. Last week, he ground the Calgary Stampeders into paste with a game-high 142 yards on 20 carries.
That 27-24 Argo win was eerily similar to Friday's result. The Stampeders led 24-13 at one point, but the Double Blue worn them down and simply had more left at the end.
Reddick, somewhat ungraciously, wasn't giving Boyd much of his due.
"He wasn't nothing special," he said. "He ran the ball well, but it wasn't as if we hadn't seen that before. He got what we gave him."
The knee injury to left guard Andrew Jones that resulted in veteran centre Angus Reid's return to full-time duty unintentionally has helped knit the offensive line closer together. Dean Valli, feeling the pressure of play-calling, moved from centre to play left guard with Reid returning to the position he has played for 10 seasons in the CFL.
"Absolutely, he's made a difference," said left tackle Damane Duckett. "Angus is a 10-year vet. He's been playing in this offence for a while, With his experience, it helps in leadership and camaraderie. With his leadership, everyone's staying after practice and getting extra film work in. Now, everybody is trying to learn what's going on."
Although the 3-1 Argos look as if they're for real, there are still, apparently, skeptics in Toronto who aren't convinced of it.
Said Argo coach Jim Barker: "Some idiot said to me when I was walking in here, ‘Nice smoke and mirrors.'" Well, you know what? Wins are wins, and in this league it’s not easy to win at any time. If we do it the way we do it, then, God bless us."
As promised, Argos/Lions owner David Braley expressed his neutrality vividly Friday night at Rogers Centre by wearing black pants and a yellow polo shirt, the colours of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Braley is long-time Ticat season ticket holder.
Asked whether he was more disappointed by a Lions' loss than buoyed by the Argos' win, Braley pleaded the Fifth. "I'm finished giving interviews," he said.
Braley can't be cheered by the response to the Argos' surprising 3-1 start. Only 19,709 fans were in attendance at the cavernous, retractable-domed stadium which had the roof opened for the game. Apparently, the Argos are still paying at the ticket office for their 7-29 record over the previous two seasons.
