1) Take deep breath: 2) Move on

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 03/10/2011 (5095 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

AFTER further review, Winnipeg needs to move on.

 Find yoga. Take a trip somewhere. Indulge in some retail therapy. Try something (anything) to get past Friday’s game and the idea that the Blue Bombers (8-5) somehow got jobbed at the end of the 32-26 loss to the Montreal Alouettes (8-5).

 There’s no conspiracy theory to consider. No devious plan against the Bombers and no secret CFL cable sent out to the officiating crews instructing them to make Winnipeg’s football life miserable with a few strategically placed questionable calls throughout the course of the game. If the league wanted to dabble in treachery it would probably do everything in its power to make sure the Toronto Argonauts held some relevance in the standings (and thus sell the market on three-down football) — not worry about some prairie town where the crowds have been great and the interest is at an all-time high.

 So put the reel back in the can, Abraham Zapruder.

 Those screen grabs of quarterback Alex Brink unable to get into the Montreal end zone from the one-yard line won’t make you feel better.

 It’s not an official stat, but the Bombers might lead the league in ‘clarifications’ with Tom Higgins, the CFL’s director of officiating. In their weekly conversation Saturday, Paul LaPolice was looking for some insight on time management, wondering how the Bombers couldn’t bang off three plays with eight seconds left — especially when the first try only took three ticks off the clock.

 “I just thought that when the ball was (whistled) into play, we snapped it pretty quickly,” LaPolice told reporters. “There should have been more time on the clock. A wedge play wouldn’t take five seconds…”

 One wonders what the tone would be if the officials didn’t allow Brink to fight and squirm for an extra moment or two on the second effort. To his credit, though, LaPolice did admit there was little in the review to overturn the two unsuccessful plunges from Brink. “I don’t think there was conclusive evidence,” he said. “I have to agree with their statement. We have to get better surge. We have to get better push.”

 If anything, LaPolice’s discussion with Higgins Saturday should have involved a giant ‘thank you’ from the Bombers head coach for turning the attention away from the bulk of the game — 47 minutes where the offence could only muster up two measly field goals against a beatable Montreal secondary.

 Think about it: if there wasn’t any zebra outrage — from the end of the night or otherwise — most of the postgame focus falls on the inability to score an offensive touchdown before the fourth quarter; why the special teams continue to sputter; and how the Bombers have managed to squander a sizable lead in the East division, losing four of their last five games.

 Instead, the above is replaced with another ‘Bombers against the world’ meme; a rallying cry from watchers constructed from yet another ruling on the field (and in the review booth) against Winnipeg that only masks the real issues.

 The Bombers are struggling right now, there’s no denying that, and part of moving on is acceptance.

 They didn’t show up for three quarters Friday, allowing the Alouettes to build a sizable lead, and despite finding enough fire (and fortune, thanks to a blown pass interference call on Als rookie cornerback Greg Laybourn, who was mugged by Bombers receiver Greg Carr) to make it close at the end the Bombers couldn’t punch it through the line of scrimmage on two chances to win the game.

 Here’s the director of officiating’s take on that crucial blown call.

 “We haven’t had that bad a call this year,” Higgins told the Montreal Gazette. “That’s the kind of call that gets coaches sick and the director of officiating sick.

 “I was sick after the game.”

 Fortunately for Winnipeg, there are five games left to get it right.