Grey Cup fan-tastic, once again

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This article was published 18/11/2022 (1027 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

REGINA — This Sunday marks the 109th edition of the Grey Cup, and Winnipeg Blue Bombers super fan John Couture is one of the few people that can say they’ve been at nearly half of them.

This year’s championship game in Regina, featuring the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Toronto Argonauts, is Couture’s 49th Grey Cup week. His first was in 1974 and he’s been hooked every since.

Yes, the football game is great, but for Couture, now 71 and retired, it’s the people that have made this week an annual tradition for him.

“I love the CFL and I love meeting people. I’m not a shy guy. I’ve met thousands of people over the years and they’ve become great friends,” Couture told the Free Press at the Touchdown Manitoba party on Friday inside the Co-Operators Centre.

“I’ve met too many people that I can’t remember all of their names so I’ll say ‘Hi, bud. How are you doing?’ We create relationships and it’s fun. Some have come to my house to party. I invited some to my wedding, some of them came to my 70th birthday party and travelled from across the country. I’m a very lucky man to have friends like that.”

Couture is a walking, talking pin cushion as his Bombers jersey and hat are loaded with pins from over the years. His nickname is ‘Cooch,’ but he might be more known as the Grey Cup Pope. He started a tradition a while back where he rents banquet room on Sunday at a hotel for a short little ceremony for Grey Cup newbies.

“As the Pope, I bless all the Grey Cup virgins, meaning, their first year at the Grey Cup. It has nothing to do with wompa wompa,” Couture explained. “It’s for Grey Cup virgins and I bless them.”

If anyone’s feeling blessed, it’s Bombers fans. A win on Sunday at Mosaic Stadium would be Winnipeg’s third straight Grey Cup title.

“I never thought I’d see us have a dynasty like Edmonton, because they won five in a row (1978-82). And if we keep the team together and happy, we can win five in a row,” said Couture. “The spirit in the locker room is unbelievable. As this button says, in O’Shea we trust.”

Michele Polinuk, 57 and also retired, has been going to the Grey Cup since 2011. Polinuk thinks the Blue and Gold are going to dominate the Argos and win yet another ring. But Polinuk has followed the team for long enough to know that things haven’t always gone Winnipeg’s way in the big game.

“I never thought this would happen. I feel so happy for the guys, but I feel so bad for Milt Stegall and Doug Brown. I really wanted them to have the experience of winning a Grey Cup,” said Polinuk.

Mohammed Khan is a 52-year-old truck driver from Winnipeg who’s at his fifth Grey Cup. He fell in love with the Bombers and the CFL in 1987 shortly after immigrating to Winnipeg from Fiji Islands.

“I didn’t know nothing about football. Soccer was the only thing we knew. But there was hardly any soccer in Winnipeg,” said Khan, who dyed his hair blue this week to show support for the Bombers. “So, I watched football for two seasons on TV, picked up the game, and away I went.”

Khan enjoys the family-like bond between the fans during Grey Cup week. It’s why he keeps coming back.

“The jersey doesn’t matter when it comes to the Grey Cup,” said Khan. “It’s for the whole league.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31

Taylor Allen
Reporter

Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.

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