Kickers need not fear for jobs

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/06/2011 (5563 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There was a time in the very recent past when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers measured their punters and kickers in decades.

There was one punter — Bob Cameron, who reigned supreme for 23 seasons between 1980-2002. And there were two kickers — Trevor Kennerd who did the duties from 1980-1991 and then Troy Westwood who had the job from 1991-2007.

A string of Bombers head coaches over those years had, of course, a multitude of decisions to make at training camp every year, but who would kick the ball was never one of them.

All that continuity evaporated, however, after Cameron first retired and Westwood was later shown the door. Since then, the Bombers have gone through more punters and kickers than Spinal Tap went through drummers (Grateful Dead went through keyboardists; Lindsay Lohan went through rehab centres; Stephen Harper went through press secretaries; etc.)

All of which is why it is news this month that there is no news on the kicking front at Bombers training camp. While head coach Paul LaPolice has many decisions to make at this year’s camp, who is going to punt and kick the ball for him this season is not among them.

Those two tasks will, almost certainly, be handed to non-imports Mike Renaud and Justin Palardy respectively, who both come into camp this season off head-turning performances last year.

While the Bombers have brought in rookie Rene Paredes to challenge the two veterans in camp, there’s no secret who’s going to be the Bombers kicker and punter on opening day.

Renaud was a CFL East Division all-star at punter in 2010 in his second season with the Bombers, posting a 42.9 yard average. Palardy — who joined the Bombers in August after Louis Sakoda injured his calf — was also outstanding in 11 games with Winnipeg, going 26-for-30 on field goals (86.7 per cent) including a season-long 51-yarder.

Cameron, who has worked with both men during training camp this season as a guest coach, said the pair have him harkening back to another Bombers kicking duo of yesteryear.

“They’re both young guys,” he said. “They remind me of Trevor Kennerd and myself when we both started in 1980.

“I think the kicking situation on this team has solidified pretty good now.”

The only rap on Palardy last season was his kickoffs had an unfortunate tendency to land on the 20-yard line — at least 10 yards short of an acceptable range for a CFL kicker. But after working out in the off-season with former Montreal Alouettes kicker Terry Baker, Cameron and Bombers head coach Paul LaPolice figure Palardy has added that necessary 10 yards to his kickoff range.

Combine that with accurate field goal kicking and a Canadian passport and you have the makings of a CFL kicker for years to come.

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“I’ve really worked on getting those kickoffs deeper,” says Palardy, 23. “If I can put them down on the 10, inside the 10 hopefully, and stay consistent on field goals, it will be a good year.”

It’d be hard to improve on an all-star performance, but Cameron says Renaud appears to have gotten more accurate on his punting. Renaud thinks he can improve even more. “You’re a fool if you get complacent,” said Renaud, 28. “I don’t take anything for granted. One off-day and they’ll have someone in here the next day to take my job. I know that.”

LaPolice says he is looking to Renaud and Palardy to potentially grow into the role Westwood and Cameron once played on the Bombers, a role that extended off the field. “When I was here in ’02-03, between Bob, Troy and Wade Miller, those three guys were like coaches in the room. Those guys could literally coach our whole special teams.

“And what I’m trying to instill in our young punter and place-kicker is to learn from these people — they can teach you a lot of things. And just practice your craft… They’re character kids.”

paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.ca