411

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 18/07/2012 (4827 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TORONTO — Reaction was swift and sympathetic from all sides here Tuesday afternoon to the news that hard-luck Winnipeg Blue Bombers quarterback Buck Pierce is out for the next month or so with torn ligaments in his left foot.

Here’s a sampling of what players from the Toronto Argonauts and the Blue Bombers — who will face each other at Rogers Centre this evening — had to say about Pierce’s bad news:

Paul LaPolice, Bombers head coach: “It’s unfortunate for Buck. Injuries are a part of the game. I know he’ll do his utmost to get back as soon as he can and we’ll see when that is… Could be four weeks to, you know — we’re thinking at least four weeks and we’ll see where it is after that.”

Glenn January, Bombers offensive lineman: “He’s a hard football player. He plays the game the way it’s meant to be played. He plays the game the way it was originally played 20 or 30 years ago. He has that Matt Dunigan mentality, I guess you could say. And that’s not always a bad thing.”

Alex Brink, Bombers quarterback: “It’s frustrating as a friend and a teammate when you see a guy get hit with such bad luck. Because you watch him prepare every day, you watch him off the field and the things he does in the community, and so for me, it’s hard. In between the lines, you compete. But when you leave the field and you’re in the locker-room, you truly work together.”

Ricky Foley, Argos defensive end: “It just seems like he has that unlucky streak in him. I have no idea, man. It seems like he can’t catch a break. There’s always something going wrong with that guy… I’ve never seen anything like it, where a guy’s that unfortunate, almost cursed.”

ARGOS quarterback Ricky Ray has long been the anti-Buck Pierce, as uncannily durable as Pierce has been uncannily injury-prone.

Now in his 10th CFL season — the previous nine were as an Edmonton Eskimo — Ray has missed just six regular-season games in that entire 165-game stretch. By comparison, Pierce has already missed 15 games in just the 39 regular-season games he’s been a Bomber.

So what’s your secret? Ray was asked Tuesday following his club’s light workout at the Argos’ practice facility.

“I don’t know what to say. Sometimes you’re lucky and sometimes you’re not. For the most part, I’ve been able to stay pretty healthy,” Ray said.

Asked if his durability is a particular point of pride for him, Ray cited another durable quarterback he admired. “Yeah, growing up watching Brett Favre and all the games he played and all the little dings and injuries he went through, but kept suiting up and going out there and playing — that’s what you’ve got to strive for. Sometimes you’re going to get dinged up and hopefully you can avoid the serious stuff and still get out there and play.”

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

Mike McIntyre | On Sports

Thursdays

Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter.

Sign up for Mike McIntyre | On Sports

Sign Up

I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Argos head coach Scott Milanovich had this to say Tuesday about his observations of Ray since the Argos acquired him from Edmonton in the off-season: “I thought he was good, and he’s better than I thought he was.”

FIELD NOTES… Former Argos kicker Noel Prefontaine revealed Tuesday he will have hip surgery soon; could be a career-ender… Coach Milanovich says the plan is for newly signed import kicker Swayze Waters to take over all the kicking and punting duties, beginning tonight…Rookie Bombers defensive end Youri Yenga (23, 6-1, 230, SMU) will make his pro debut tonight, platooning at end and also doing some special-teams duties… The Bombers are hoping Yenga will give them a more effective end rush than they were getting from Rodney Fritz.

— Paul Wiecek