Simply the best

Robert Wayne Mcintyre my old Victoria buddy stated it most appropriately when he said it was simply the best Labour day classic of all time. I alluded to the fact in last weeks blog that I considered the 1951 and 2002 contests my favourite all -time labour Day games but I have to admit this years contest topped them both. Mcintyre called it the greatest Rider win since the 1989 Grey cup game.Mcintrye went on to say that what Canadian Football fans saw on Sunday from Mosaic Stadium was the CFL at its absolute best.Most reporters and fans that I talked to on coffee row this morning were left speechless in attempting to describe their emotional swings during this hectic contest where momentum swung back and forth for sixty minutes.

It was a typical Labour Day weekend with 4000 Bomber fans in attendance at the game who after spending a couple of days in Regina partying till all hours of the morning the previous two nights left the Queen City disappointed with the games final result however they should not feel that way because it was one of those encounters were either team could have won and from an entertainment point of view there were no losers.

The Bombers put on a spirited show led by a couple of former Roughriders Quarterback Kevin Glen and wide receiver Derrick Armstrong.Glenn had his best game of the season completing 27 of 36 attempts for 393 yards and three touchdowns with Armstrong on the receiving end of thirteen of those attempts. Armstrong gave the Rider secondary fits all through the game with some great moves and circus catches that made him almost impossible to cover.

The Rider defense came up big when they had to and held Charles Roberts to 83 yards which in itself is an amazing accomplishment.

Kerry Joseph was good on 20 out of 32 passing attempts for 384 yards and two touchdowns but it was his running ability which turned out to be the deciding factor in this contest as he rushed nine times for 74yards the big play being the 27yard run on a Quarterback draw for the wining TD with 12 seconds left on the clock.

The 31-26 victory moves the Riders back into first place in the West one point ahead of BC and makes the Banjo Bowl in Winnipeg next weekend a game that everyone will want to watch to see if it matches the thrills and chills of the Labour Day contest.The Riders never gave up in this one even though they were down 18-10 at half time which is another tribute to Kent Austin and his coaching staff.