Big Blue leaving points on the field

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ 34-30 loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders in Sunday’s Labour Day Classic was a stark reminder football is a game of inches and the margin for error is razor thin.

Bombers’ comeback comes up short in Labour Day Classic

REGINA – Sunday’s Labour Day Classic had all the drama we’ve come to expect between these Prairie rivals, as the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Saskatchewan Roughriders went right down to the wire in front of a packed house at Mosaic Stadium.

The Bombers looked finished, trailing 31-17 with just minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. But instead of a slow burn to the finish line, Winnipeg mounted a fierce comeback with two quick touchdowns, only to fall a two-point convert short of completing the improbable comeback.

With the game on the line, Roughriders defensive back Tevaughn Campbell snuffed out Zach Collaros’s game-tying pass intended for Dalton Schoen, intercepting it and returning it to the end zone for a game-sealing two-point score. That play sealed a 34-30 victory for the Riders and sent a majority of the 34,000-plus in attendance home happy.

It was the fourth straight LDC decided by four points or fewer, with the three prior Classics all decided by just two points. The loss snapped a two-game win streak for the Bombers, dropping them to 6-5 on the year, while the Riders improved to a CFL-leading 9-2 after rebounding from a disappointing loss to the Calgary Stampeders in Week 12.

Schoen ready to shine: Bombers receiver returns after injury

Dalton Schoen returning to practice Tuesday provided a lifeline for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, with the dynamic receiver aiming to make his comeback from a knee injury just in time for the annual Labour Day Classic in Regina on Sunday.