Bombers think they can corral Calgary to keep playoff hopes alive

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/09/2015 (3978 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

THE oddsmakers say the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are 10-point underdogs at home tonight against the Calgary Stampeders and it’s difficult to argue.

If past performance is the most reliable indicator of future outcomes, this one looks on paper like it will be a laugher for the Stamps. Consider:

The Stamps, at 9-3, have the best record in the CFL; the Bombers, at 4-8, have the second-worst record in the CFL.

The Stamps are 2-0 against the Bombers this season and throttled Winnipeg 36-8 at Investors Group Field just four weeks ago.

The Bombers have lost five of their last six games and are 1-8 since 2012 when coming into a game off a short week, as they are this week.

Despite all the evidence to the contrary, the Bombers genuinely believe they have a real, honest to goodness shot at winning this game.

“Everyone in the room believes we have a chance, and that’s all that matters,” defensive end Greg Peach said Thursday after the club’s walk-through practice.

So what are the Bombers smoking, you’re asking yourself, to think this floundering club has a chance of beating the defending Grey Cup champs?

Well, those losses to Calgary this season that have the bookmakers thinking the Stamps are a mortal lock tonight are also the source for all that optimism in the Bombers locker-room Peach talks about.

The Bombers coaching staff believes their personnel match up well against Calgary and they point to the two games between the two teams this season as evidence of that.

In the first game — at McMahon Stadium in Calgary in Week 4 — the Bombers jumped out to a 16-0 lead in the first quarter and looked to be well on their way to a huge road win, only to have Calgary storm back and win 26-25 thanks to a couple of terrible Winnipeg turnovers on, you guessed it, special teams, that gift-wrapped 14 points for Calgary.

In the second game, at IGF in Week 10, the Bombers trailed 8-3 at halftime thanks to a Herculean effort by a defence that looked might it steal a game for the Bombers. But those prospects fizzled as the defence tired in the second half on a night the offence, led by QB Robert Marve, generated just 101 yards in passing.

So yeah, Calgary is 2-0 against the Bombers this season. But Winnipeg genuinely believes — and with legitimate reason — they should have won both those games.

And that, Peach believes, provides Winnipeg with some hard-won lessons heading into tonight.

“There’s some things that we needed to correct and we have corrected,” says Peach. “And we know that we can beat them, so it gives us confidence, for sure.”

‘Everyone in the room believes we have a chance, and that’s all that matters’
— Greg Peach

Bombers linebacker Sam Hurl says the difference between the two teams in the previous two games came down to grit — Calgary had it and Winnipeg didn’t.

“They’re a team that is good at closing out games,” says Hurl. “They’ll stick with you all game long and then in the fourth quarter, they’ll find a way to get that one or two points they need to win the game.”

Hurl says the desperation of the Bombers — “It’s playoff football for us right now, definitely” — could be an equalizer in a game Winnipeg needs a lot more than Calgary.

And Mike O’Shea? Well, the eternally optimistic Bombers field boss believes his team is capable of pulling off a huge upset tonight.

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 consent to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies.

I consent to CASL agreement.

“We need a win and we know we’re capable of it,” said O’Shea. “I think we played Calgary pretty well for six big quarters. Most of us think we should have won that first game. And the first half of the last game, being down 8-3 at the half and then giving it up in those final two quarters — nobody’s happy with that.

“But they all recognize we played good football against a good team.”

The question heading into tonight — with the Bombers’ season potentially hanging in the balance: Is three times is a charm?

paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @PaulWiecek