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Running back Lavarus Giles impressed with 77 yards against Hamilton. (MIKE.DEAL@FREEPRESS.MB.CA )

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Punter Mike Renaud would love to kick the Alouettes in his return to Montreal. (BORIS.MINKEVICH@FREEPRESS.MB.CA)

They used to have Friday night fights on TV and Elton John sings Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting but for those wanting work with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, this Tuesday will be the evening to mix it up.

"Tuesday night is a big night for a lot of guys. It's important for them to know this is their last audition. They need to perform at their highest level," said Bombers coach Mike Kelly, following one of Saturday's workouts.

The team will travel to Montreal for a final pre-season game Tuesday night with the Alouettes (6 p.m., CJOB).

"I'm looking for some separation," he added. "The guys made it difficult on us last week and I'm expecting them to make it even more difficult this week. The bottom line is we're going to keep guys that are playing their position consistently, smartly, aggressively and are noticeable playmakers."

There are job battles at any number of positions but a few areas to watch are running back, kick returner and punter.

There's a glut at running back with veterans Fred Reid and Joe Smith being pushed by newcomers Lavarus Giles and Yvenson Bernard.

"We can't let any old dogs get very comfortable right (now). There are some young pups that can go and we're going to keep our best players," said Kelly, who has not hidden his approval of Giles and Bernard since their arrival.

The fact the Bombers put up 141 yards on the ground in the team's first pre-season game and Giles romping for 77 of those caught Kelly's attention.

Punter Mike Renaud is also pushing for work. It appears import Alexis Serna will handle the place-kicking this season but Renaud has a chance to take the punting chores away from Serna.

"(Renaud's) certainly there competing and he's got the right passport. But passport aside, he's punted the ball very well the last couple of days. Hopefully he can maintain that and we'll make some decisions after Tuesday night," said Kelly.

Renaud played his college football in Montreal at Concordia University and is hoping the return to familiar ground will work in his favour.

"I'm pretty excited about it. I'm here to kick for Winnipeg and that's my focus, but at the same time it would be nice to show Montreal what I can do, seeing as they cut me back in 2007. It's a chance for redemption," said Renaud.

Kelly said he and his coaching staff were scheduled to get together on Saturday night to determine who will travel to Montreal.

"We're in a battle to get down to 50 players to take on the trip. We're going to see what guys are in a dogfight and what guys are hurt. You hate to leave a guy home and then you end up cutting him but that could be a reality, too," said Kelly. "I have told players we can't evaluate you if you're not on the field. You can't be hurt.

"That's just the reality and you have to play through some things. There's a difference between being injured and being hurt. If you're injured -- something better be dangling. If you're just hurt, you have to play through it. For a football player, the only day you feel good is the very first day. The next day you feel good might be sometime in February. They say this is a contact sport. Basketball is a contact sport. This is a collision sport."

gary.lawless@freepress.mb.ca

These walls

are sturdy:

Not long after he stepped on to field, Lenny Walls began to draw comparisons to former Blue Bombers DB Juran Bolden. Walls, like Bolden, is long and lanky with NFL time on his resumé.

"He certainly moves pretty well out there. For a guy who is 6-4, he can turn his hips and go like he's 5-11. He's been holding his own for a guy who hasn't been in camp," said coach Mike Kelly, who shipped a second-round draft pick to the Calgary Stampeders for the rights to Walls. The Bombers and Walls took some time coming to terms but the 197-pound Walls got to camp on Friday and immediately turned heads with his size, speed and smarts. "He's jumped right in and put himself in a position to battle right away. We'll talk about bringing him to Montreal. He may be ready. He's a quick learner. We're not overly complicated in anything we do. Our teaching methods and our terminology are relatively simplistic."

As for Walls becoming an impact player such as Bolden was earlier in his career, Kelly said time will tell.

"We hope so. That's yet to be seen. He certainly has a lot of experience in the NFL. I've talked to some people in the NFL and they were surprised to hear he was playing in this league," said Kelly with a knowing smile that said his expectations for Walls are very high.

The return game:

With the release of kick return specialists Justin Surrency and Ramonce Taylor, the Bombers are looking within for players to handle both kick and punt-return duties.

"We released those players knowing we had other players that could handle the job and handle themselves in a better manner. We have a very athletic football team and guys that can handle those jobs more than adequately," said Kelly.

Running backs Joe Smith, Fred Reid, Lavarus Giles and Yvenson Bernard are getting looks in the kickoff return formation while receiver Arjei Franklin and defensive back Javon Johnson are auditioning as punt returners.

Mount Vesuvius

Bombers defensive line coach Richard Harris mostly takes a laid-back approach but can be good for a tirade every once in a while. Saturday morning the towering coach saw something he didn't like and gave his troops a nasty little chat.

The schedule

The Blue will hold a workout this morning at 8:45 a.m. and then make the trip to Montreal on Monday. The club faces the Als on Tuesday (6 p.m., CJOB) and then makes its final cuts by 2 p.m. on Thursday. The team has to be down to 46 players plus seven on the practice roster.

Knock on wood

Head coach Mike Kelly says the Bombers are mostly healthy at this stage and the team is only listing linebacker James Johnson (knee) and offensive lineman Thaddeus Coleman (foot) as injured.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition June 21, 2009 C3