Footwear a non-issue in Bombers’ West Division semi-final against Eskimos

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This article was published 11/11/2017 (3204 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

With the relatively mild weather (high of -6 C) expected for Sunday afternoon’s West Division semifinal at Investors Group Field and crews working diligently to prepare a clean playing surface, veteran Blue Bombers slotback Weston Dressler said he won’t be agonizing about his footwear at game time.

He will be choosing between two pairs of cleats.

“I imagine I’ll be using the same ones I used during the season,” said Dressler, suggesting the field conditions won’t be much different than what Winnipeg experienced during its wintery regular-season finale in Calgary. “…I just find with the FieldTurf nowadays, if there’s a little snow on it, it’s usually fine if you commit to making that cut, just have the mentality the snow’s not there. I think we have a tenancy as players to see snow and think slip and the way the turf is now — unless it’s freezing underneath that black rubber — I find it to be fine.”

Bombers tailback Andrew Harris will stick to the tried and true.

“I’m using the same cleats that I’ve been using all year,” said Harris. “The conditions aren’t as bad as they seem. I mean, everyone’s been running the field now. There was a high school game on Thursday. The field’s been run on, it’s not that cold where it’s (going to be) icy.”

Winnipeg quarterback Matt Nichols will be making his second post-season start in the CFL.

“It’s no secret there’s going to be some ice on the field and it’s going to be cold out there,” said Nichols. “Being in Edmonton for so long, I know that the climate is very similar and that they’ve been practising in negative temperatures just like us. They’re going to be prepared for it — they played in a cold game last week, too. It’s something that you go through your game plan as normal and you mentally go out there and not let it affect you — or you do — but we’re not going to let it affect us.”

TAILBACK QUANDRY: Harris, the CFL’s regular-season rushing champ, has been a major headache for the Eskimos. He scorched the Edmonton D for 159 yards on 19 carries and 201 yards on 17 receptions in two games.

All-star defensive tackle Almondo Sewell has developed a healthy respect for Harris since he broke into the league with the B.C. Lions.

“I remember I gave him everything I had on one hit and I just bounced right off,” said Sewell, who Harris calls the finest defensive lineman he’s faced. “I just said, ‘This guy’s real,’ and he’s always been that guy. You see it on tape, guys taking huge shots at him and he’s just not going down. You have to wrap him up, you have to twist when you hit him, you have to do all those things. He’s a great running back.”

Sewell created a stir earlier this week and he generated some bulletin board material when he proclaimed the Eskimos were “favourites” in the West semifinal and a “better” team than the Bombers.

“It’s not coming out of ignorance,” said Sewell of his bold pronouncement. “It’s coming out of pure facts, that’s what we’re there for.”

REDEMPTION GAME: Star Edmonton receiver Brandon Zylstra said his squad has no intention of losing to Winnipeg for a third time this season.

“We’ve been talking about this as a year of redemption for us,” said Zylstra, who led the league with 1,687 receiving yards on 100 catches. “Every team we’ve lost to we’ve come back and accomplished our goal. So, that’s something we’re definitely looking forward to, this rematch tomorrow.”

Zylstra also finished second among all receivers with 487 yards after the catch. Winnipeg’s Harris led the CFL with 687.

A PERFECT GAME: The Bombers defence has been far from perfect in 2017, ending the regular season near the bottom of most statisitical categories, including points and yards allowed per game. But that didn’t stop veteran cornerback Chris Randle from throwing out some lofty goals, including shutting down a prolific Edmonton offence led by quarterback Mike Reilly.

“We definitely have that mindset, that we’re going to go out and try and pitch a shutout and score. That’s our mindset each and every week,” said Randle, who has two interceptions against Reilly this year, one of which he returned for a touchdown. “We want to score, we want to create turnovers and we want to pitch a shutout. Our coaches did a good job the previous two games we played them, and we’re going to follow it playing this game.”

Randle, the Bombers nominee for most outstanding defensive player, was confronted once again this week with the unpleasant numbers put up by the defence. Winnipeg finished second from the bottom, behind only the Montreal Alouettes, in average yards allowed per game (397 yards) and 6.7 yards per offensive play. But there’s a different number that Randle said the team puts the most stock in.

“We’re 12-6, home playoff game – we’re doing the right things. That’s what we’re focused on, winning the ball game by any means,” he said. “We’ve got a team that handles adversity very well. When the defence isn’t going, offence goes, special teams go. We’re going to carry that mantra… as a defence we know what we’re capable of.”

The defence is coming off their best game of the season. They forced seven turnovers and registered seven sacks in the regular-season finale in Calgary against the Stampeders. That, of course, came agaisnt Calgary’s backup quarterbacks and not Bo Levi Mitchell. Doing something similar against Reilly and an Eskimos offence that led the CFL by averaging 407 yards of net offence per game, will be a whole other challenge. But one Randle said the Bombers looked forward to meeting head on.

“We want the ball. The ball is the prize. It’s the goal,” he said. “We know what our strengths are. Creating turnovers is a matter of just ripping the ball out, and being in attack (mode), being the aggressor.”

The Bombers led the CFL with eight defensive touchdowns scored and were second with a turnover ratio, at plus-14. Winnipeg is 12-2 when they have equal or fewer turnovers in a game. They are 0-4 when they have more.

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jkhamilton

Jeff Hamilton
Multimedia producer

Jeff Hamilton joined the Free Press newsroom in 2015, reporting on the sports and investigative beats until he left the Free Press in July 2026.

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