Mixed messages from Game 1 loss to Eskimos

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 04/07/2009 (6167 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It would be so easy to make excuses for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ long-anticipated debut; that a 290-pound behemoth was taken out by a bug, that a kicker made one that didn’t count but missed one that did, and that a star receiver staged a one-man strike.

All true. And even then, the Bombers came up short by two measly points at Commonwealth Stadium, a place where so many Winnipeg teams have gone to die.

After all, the Bombers were 9 1/2-point dogs who lost all-star defensive lineman Doug Brown to the flu, came within a 47-yard field goal of a tie — which Alexis Serna made after the Esks cleverly called a time out, then missed — and were minus receiver Derick Armstrong, who refused to play after discovering he was not listed as a starter. (Derick Armstrong, meet Dany Heatley; Dany Heatley, meet Derick Armstrong.)

Is this a good thing? Well, no, if at season’s end the Bombers come up one or two points short of a playoff berth. Neither is it acceptable if you’re one of those bottom-liners who adhere to the mantra that nothing is gained from a loss.

And we’re pretty certain the Edmonton Eskimos have their own laundry list of ‘what ifs’ too, highlighted by the cruel loss of star-crossed running back Jesse Lumsden to a dislocated shoulder in the first quarter — a devastating blow to the Esks plan of attack.

So to call the Bombers’ opener a success would not only be false, but hollow. Yet, to be fair (or naive), there were threads of hope in the fabric of defeat.

Look no further than quarterback Stefan LeFors. His numbers sucked, right? I mean, 14-of-31 for a paltry 174 yards. Tell us Kevin Glenn couldn’t put up those numbers. But the southpaw did display two things you can’t teach: elusiveness and smarts. No interceptions, escaping the rush, and driving the Bombers into field goal range when — and this can not be understated — the game was on the line.

Maybe that’s small consolation now but, come on, did you really think a guy with a whopping five CFL starts under his belt making his debut with an overhauled team on the road would be the second coming of Tom Clements? In the pouring rain? Really?

Then there’s head coach Mike Kelly, who clearly couldn’t resist implementing an intricate, multifaceted misdirection offence which — while producing some early results — came apart when the grass track turned sloppy.

The choreography became unravelled. Players were bumping into each other. Too often, it came to resemble the Albanian synchronized swimming team. A little too cute, perhaps, for an outfit that still has that new team smell.

That’s on Kelly. Perhaps, like LeFors, the head coach will also grow more comfortable in his role with time. Kelly will realize that, yes, he’s got the job. He won’t feel obliged to prove to everybody that he invented the game of football.

But there’s promise there, too, if you look hard enough. There was no quit in the visitors, even while the offence struggled, at least in the air. Because the Bombers did rush for over 160 yards, don’t forget. They created two turnovers, the latter which led to a touchdown. That’s on Kelly and his coaches, too.

In the end, however, if you were looking for a definitive indication to what the 2009 Bombers might aspire, Commonwealth in the rain turned out to be the wrong place. Give me a positive and I’ll give you a negative. Then we can switch.

In fact, you can boil the entire Bombers performance down to the very last drive.

A fledgling starting quarterback gamely drives his underdog team into field goal range to tie. Good.

One of the team’s finest young offensive lineman, Brendon LaBatte, is called for procedure, pushing the attempt from 42 to 47 yards. Not good.

A kicker who struggled in his rookie season actually hits the field goal on a treacherously slippery field. How important, not just for the game, but for Alexis Serna’s confidence. And, who knew, the Bombers had forced the Eskimos to overtime. A huge upset was still in their grasp.

But hold on. Time out on the play. Try again.

So Serna lines it up again… and hooks it left. Game over.

A hit and a miss. And a loss.

Could anything could sum up the Bombers’ opener of mixed messages any better?

randy.turner@freepress.mb.ca

Randy Turner
Reporter

Randy Turner spent much of his journalistic career on the road. A lot of roads. Dirt roads, snow-packed roads, U.S. interstates and foreign highways. In other words, he got a lot of kilometres on the odometer, if you know what we mean.

   Read full biography