A time for reflection

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 02/10/2010 (5827 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

VANCOUVER — Years ago — back at the start of this millennium when ‘Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ and ‘playoffs’ were terms that could actually be used in the same sentence — then-head coach Dave Ritchie adopted an approach that essentially became his team’s persona.

A veteran boss with a bent nose and love for players who went through the line, not around it, Ritchie put the ‘old’ in ‘old school.’ And he fostered an ‘Us vs. Them… and Them is out to screw us’ attitude his teams took into battle every week.

Not to get all nostalgic, but it says here this current edition of the Bombers would do well to do the same. Close ranks, band together and come out of their corner with both fists clenched and swinging from the ankles.

And the rationale here is simple. All this ‘best 3-9 team in history’ bunk has done nothing but blow smoke up the rear ends of a squad that has lost six of its last seven. Yes, they were hooped by some awful officiating last week. And, yes, they have lost six games by a touchdown or less.

But clinging to all that does nothing but give you first dibs on the sofa in front of the TV when the playoffs begin.

Maybe that, in part, explains why head coach Paul LaPolice — a man who worked for Ritchie back in the day — trotted a mirror into the Bomber clubhouse earlier this week when the bitching about the referees after last Friday’s loss to the Montreal Alouettes was at its peak.

For the record, LaPolice even wanted the mirror shipped out to Vancouver for Saturday’s critical contest with the B.C. Lions.

“We had it shrink-wrapped and everything,” said LaPolice Friday as his team warmed up at Empire Field. “We just couldn’t fit it any where. Our plan was to bring it and so I think Brad (equipment guy Brad Fotty) was going to try and get me one while we’re out here.

“We’re responsible for everything that happens. The bottom line is your growth will depend on what you do. It’s the person that looks in the mirror every day that has the most control over what happens, more than any coach or anyone else.”

Some will buy into LaPolice’s attempt to rally the troops. Safety Ian Logan, for example, suggested it helped reinforce a belief most in the locker-room already held.

“It’s a good idea, especially for a team that has been losing because a lot of times the blame gets put on other people,” Logan said. “It’s important to look at yourself and look at what you’re doing wrong. It’s about understanding what you need to do to work harder, not looking at other people’s mistakes.

“Some teams just know how to win. We’ve shown glimpses of it, but when it’s all on the line we’ve got to learn to come out on top. It’s a mindset that comes naturally after it happens enough. We have to get to that.”

Yes, they do have to get to that. And that’s what makes tonight’s matchup — while hardly a game-of-the-week candidate — such an intriguing one. While one scribe joked a contest between 3-9 and 4-8 squads is a battle of ‘resistible force vs. movable object’, it does hold big-time playoff implications.

A win here breathes life into the Bomber season, especially with the Lions in Winnipeg on Thanksgiving Monday. But a loss begins the disintegration of any playoff dream.

“It’s like we’ve been already been in playoff mode for two thirds of the season,” said Doug Brown. “We’ve had a lot of must-win games. We’ve had a lot of opportunities to take advantage of situations presented to us… but we haven’t taken advantage of them. But as the season moves on you run out of these chances so we need to cash in on one of them.

“That’s why I don’t really think we need to come up with these, what do they call them, dog and pony shows? When it’s your profession, self motivation is the key. I think (the mirror in the locker-room) was moreso just to show us a lesson. It’s that regardless of the adverse elements in a game or how things transpire you’re ultimately responsible.

“There’s still something to play for. This is huge for us. Right now I think we’re on the precipice of exciting times.”

That would be a welcome change. After all, there’s no glory in being dubbed the best 3-10 team in history.

ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca