411

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This article was published 19/07/2013 (4438 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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This probably isn’t how Dan West wanted to face the largest media scrum of his young CFL career — answering questions about his shove of Cory Watson at the end of practice Wednesday that could sideline the talented receiver for up to a month with a bad hamstring.

But there was the Bomber reserve safety facing the music Thursday like a pro.

“Obviously I was disappointed Cory Watson got injured,” he said. “I wasn’t trying to do anything like that. We were just competing and practising and sometimes playing football and those things happen. Both of us could have been a bit smarter on the play and toned it down a bit knowing we had a game.”

West was called out by head coach Tim Burke later on his daily radio show, where the boss said he would have cut him had there been more depth on the roster. A day later it was Burke apologizing to West for lashing out without seeing Watson’s straight-arm to the face that led to the shove.

“You never should say anything until after you’ve watched the video,” said Burke. “I apologized to Dan for making him the villain. Cory had a part in it, he shouldn’t have stiff-armed Dan. When you get highly motivated individuals with a lot of testosterone and it gets down to everybody trying to prove who is a man and who isn’t… we want to stay away from those situations.”

RUMBLE, RUMBLE

The Bombers rushed for 260 yards against the Argos in a 44-32 win last October and, clearly, would love to see Chad Simpson, Will Ford et al. throw up those kinds of numbers again. The Argos are surrendering a league-worst 162.3 yards along the ground per game.

ROSTER SHUFFLE

The Bombers have added Brett Carter, Carl Fitzgerald, Johnny Sears Jr. and Ian Wild to the 46-man roster. Fitzgerald replaces Chris Cvetkovic (calf), Sears, Jr. comes on for Desia Dunn (hamstring), Wild for Terrell Parker (knee) and Carter has been added for Watson. Edwards was moved from the injured list to the four-man reserve, seemingly making it easier to activate him should there be another injury or…

“I suppose if something unforeseen were to happen… like Doug Pierce was walking down the street and a meteor hits him, we could elevate Terrence (to the roster) within an hour before the game,” said Burke. “We checked… there’s no meteor showers coming.”

BATTLE ROYALE

Nobody has ever questioned Buck Pierce’s compete level. And he knows the Argos are going to pin their ears back and come after him tonight.

“They’re going to do a lot of things up front, they’re going to come after you and they’re going to say that our guys are better than you,” Pierce said. “They’re going to try and hit the quarterback, they’re going to take chances.

“I always kind of relayed it as (Argos defensive co-ordinator) Chris Jones is a guy who wants to go out there and brawl. He wants to say that his guys are going to come after you, and they’re going to hit you, and they’re gong to hit you and they’re going to hit you and they’re going to try and hit you. My mentality coming into this game is it’s going to be a fight and I’m ready for 12 rounds of it.”

HANGOVER, PART IV?

Argos head coach Scott Milanovich will have nothing of the notion his squad is suffering from a Grey Cup hangover. “We’ve had so much change,” said Milanovich. “A couple of years ago coach (former Montreal boss Marc) Trestman’s rallying cry was, ‘It’s a new team.’ This really is a new team. It’s just new guys trying to get together and learn the CFL and trying to gel. It’s going to take some time. I’m seeing strides. It’s coming.”

— Tait