Off Topic » Canadas football championship for the second

Watching my 73rd CFL football game of the year, I must say I saw things I have never seen. The Eastern Semi-Final was not a well-played football game, a point I know may seem obvious. And if the Hamilton Tiger-Cats are to move on to the Grey Cup, they must improve or it will be Toronto playing in Canadas football championship for the second year in a row . Again, no kidding, Chris! But in a league that can be criticized and complimented within one paragraph if not one sentence, the 2013 East Semi-Final sure had an original charm all its own. First was the weather. I think I saw everything; the wind was blowing from the North or was it the East, or maybe the West but definitely not the South, I think. There was rain, even some frozen rain and I definitely saw snow at one point. In the second half, the sun came out; thats right, the sun and it looked like it was warming up. But then it started raining a little more and I saw a rainbow over the Alumni Stadium. I have never seen a rainbow over a football field before so I squinted my eyes and yes, there it was. The weather affected the game but the players adjusted and Hamilton adjusted just a little more than Montreal. The only two touchdowns scored by the Ticats were on their last two possessions, one in regulation time and one in overtime. At moments, the Ticats offence looked dreadful but the second to last drive of 97 yards was a work of football art; maybe not the art that the majority of football fans would appreciate but a demonstration of patience in play-calling and execution. Every play of the drive, Montreal came after Burris and every play Burris found the open area and open man and took the team in for a touchdown that, at the time, looked like the game winner. There is aggressive play-calling and execution and then there is patient play-calling and execution. With 5:18 to go to 1:04 to go. it was a lesson in football patience in the extreme as it seemed that every pass was between seven and five yards. I have never seen two different quarterbacks used so frequently with such positive result. In overtime, the first play was Burris, then the next two were Dan Lefevour and then back to Burris for one more and Lefevour for two to win the game. Never seen it before but look forward to seeing it again. For Montreal, the 2013 season can be described in two, perhaps contradictory words: adversity and optimism. From former head coach Dan Hawkins to quarterback Anthony Calvillo to wide receiver Jamel Richardson to offensive guard Scott Flory to running back Brendan Whitaker, the Alouettes were in adjustment mode all year long on offence. But Jim Popp took over for Hawkins, Troy Smith looked pretty good in replacing Calvillo, Duron Carter played effectively for Jamel Richarson, Brian Bomben replaced Scott Flory and Tyrell Sutton looked like Whitaker. Watch out for Montreal next year, they learned a lot and found out a lot that will be beneficial for 2014. In the Western Semi-Final, lets be honest, the Riders almost blew it. BC showed up and played well. Travis Lulay was magnificent and in giving credit where earned, the Lions blockers and pass protectors had their best game of the year. The game changed toward the end of the third quarter because at half-time, BC was winning 17-16 and scored on their first possession of the second half to make it 24-16. The game was theirs to win. Then a critical 2-and-out forced by the Rider defence and a couple of crushing hits turned it into Saskatchewans game to win. The dream lives on. Darian Durant was magnificent, completing 19 of 23 passes or 83 per cent with two touchdowns and no interceptions as well as six runs for 97 yards. On those runs, Durant made a 2nd and 10 into a first down twice and a second and 7 into a first down once. In football, a game of maybe 150 plays can come down to two or three and I thought the three runs by Durant were the game-changing and game-winning plays. For BC, the season was awkward. They had poor red zone defence but great middle field defence. There were blocking issues at times for Andrew Harris and Stefan Logan and six games without Travis Lulay, who was exceptional on Sunday. But the word persists; awkward. So now its Hamilton at Toronto and Saskatchewan at Calgary. And the visiting fans will travel. I doubt I will see a rainbow in the Rogers Centre but Ill be looking for one at McMahon Stadium. Miles Bridges Jersey .9 million deal Thursday. The 25-year McGinn had 19 goals and 19 assists in 79 games last season in helping the Avalanche tie a franchise record with 52 wins. Percy Miller Jersey . Maricopa County spokeswoman Cari Gerchick says thats the finding from an autopsy conducted Thursday by the county Medical Examiners Office. http://www.cheaphornetsjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-larry-johnson-jersey .Y. -- Kristen Gillman rallied to win the U. Tony Parker Jersey .com) - The Miami Heat will try to close out the Charlotte Bobcats Monday night in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference first round series. Alonzo Mourning Jersey . Reimer told TSNs Mark Masters on Tuesday that he doesnt know if he will be moved leading up to the March 5 trade deadline but added he wasnt interested in discussing it. "Who knows whats going to happen on the horizon here and right now I dont know if I want to talk about it too much.VANCOUVER -- Their next opponent has yet to score a goal this season but the Vancouver Whitecaps arent taking the New England Revolution lightly. They know how dangerous a desperate team can be. The unbeaten Whitecaps head to Boston on Saturday afternoon to face a struggling Revolution squad eager to ignite their offence in their home opener. "Im not getting fooled by the results they had in the first two games," said Vancouver head coach Carl Robinson. "They are a good team and it will be a big test for us." New England has been outscored 5-0 in two road games so far, but has won both its previous meetings against Vancouver when playing at Gillette Stadium. New England is also unbeaten in home openers since 2007. "Its a dangerous time to play them," said Whitecaps captain Jay DeMerit. "Theyll have a lot of fire in their bellies and we need to make sure we combat that. Our energy needs to be there from the start." DeMerit wont be on hand to deliver that spark, as he said on Twitter that he is being rested this weekend in advance of Vancouvers upcoming Western Conference matchups. Vancouvers energy level was a recurring topic during the teams training sessions this week on the UBC campus. After dazzling home fans in their season-opening 4-1 win over the New York Red Bulls, the team looked somewhat sluggish in a 1-1 tie against a 10-man Chivas USA side in southern California. Against Chivas, the Whitecaps fell behind 1-0 before Gambian forward Kekuta Manneh tied it with a spectacular strike in the 81st minute. Although Vancouver pulled out the road point, many on the team felt it was an opportunity missed. "We were not a 100 per cent in our energy last weekend and thats something we can improve on," said Whitecaps goalie David Ousted. "If youre up a man, you have to work maybe even harder to break them down than if theyre 11. "They did really well at ruining our play and we had to work hard to get through and I think thatts something well learn from.dddddddddddd. If it happens again, we will be even more aggressive in going for the goals." While fans pine to see Manneh and his scoring touch in the starting lineup on Saturday, Robinson says Mannehs not there yet. The quick-footed forward missed the pre-season with a lower back issue and right now his fitness level is still a work in progress. Manneh, who scored six goals and started six games last year, played 30 minutes against Chivas and seven in the opener. He was seen running drills alone during practice. "Hes a great kid and has got fantastic ability," said Robinson. "Its important we do the fitness that the guys did in pre-season. He missed that. He got his reward on Sunday, and played very well. Hell be fine for (Saturday) and Im sure he play some part in New England." Vancouver will need its offence clicking against a Revolution team that, despite its goal-scoring struggles, is known to be stingy at the back thanks in part Jose Goncalves, last years MLS defender of the year. The Portuguese centre back helped New England tie for the third-best defensive record in 2013 with 38 goals allowed. "They play tight and narrow at the back, so if we can spread them out and get some crosses, hopefully (we) get some of these guys on the scoreboard again," said DeMerit. "New England is a compact team. Theyve got a couple good forwards up top, guys who are proven scorers in this league. They havent scored a lot of goals yet, but that doesnt mean they arent capable of doing so." Notes: Whitecaps midfielder Russell Teibert of Niagara Falls, Ont., says hes feels good and is ready to return after missing Sundays match with a hamstring injury. Teibert started the season opener and registered one shot on goal. ... Vancouver defender Johnny Leveron (concussion) is also expected to be available for Saturdays match. ... Vancouver won the last meeting between the clubs 4-3 at B.C. Place on June 16, 2013. 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