Bombers enjoying fine weather during camp

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 04/06/2012 (4887 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The dark clouds of the ongoing stadium construction drama at the University of Manitoba have yet to reach the Winnipeg Blue Bombers football operations.

As far as the players and coaches are concerned, there’s nothing to worry about as long as the sun is shining and the weather remains toasty. The Bombers might not be in mid-season form yet, but the weather sure is.

“This is great out here,” said linebacker Pierre-Luc Labbe after Day 2 of training camp at Canad Inns Stadium today. “It’s like the middle of summer right now. Hopefully it stays like this for the rest of the camp.”

How about the rest of the week? Environment Canada is forecasting sunny skies and highs near the 30 C mark for the next three days.

With the mercury rising today, head coach Paul LaPolice gave his players slight reprieve, calling off the four-hour session 20 minutes early. The club will go for another full workout Tuesday (8:30 a.m. start time), before holding an abbreviated practice on Wednesday.

“What we need to do (on the field), we’re trying to do much faster this year,” LaPolice said, adding that his department — the football team — won’t be distracted by today’s news that Investors Group Field might not be ready to open in September now.

The club remains relatively injury free after two days of camp.

Defensive lineman Jason Vega fell awkwardly and was held out of the second part of today’s workout, but he should be fine. Same deal with defensive back Brandon Stewart, who sat out the second half of practice to give his high ankle sprain injury (suffered at the end of the 2011 season) a rest.

LaPolice said the coaches will rotate Stewart through the daily workouts – giving him a session off once in a while – to help him get back to full strength.

The Bombers also expect to have defensive backs Jovon Johnson and Jonathan Hefney on the field Tuesday morning. The players were granted absences for the start of camp because of personal matters. Both were spotted around the team complex today.