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Through the lens Edmonton Eskimos - Montreal alouettes

Photos credit : Dominick Gravel

There was only one possible scenario in this game for our Alouettes: Victory was not simply hoped for, it was mandatory. Kavis Reed’s squad knew it was all or nothing on this rainy Monday afternoon at home.

The pressure was certainly high, and it was a tight battle right up until the fourth quarter. But having to play catch-up, even in the CFL, is risky. And today, unfortunately, the Als came up short.

However, in defeat as in victory, there are players who rise above the fray and their efforts merit recognition.
Often criticized for only finding its rhythm too late in a game, the Montreal offence didn’t take long to get the fans at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium on their feet. The first points of the game came from our pitbull of a running back Tyrell Sutton – without a doubt the star of the game – who got into the end zone after a 9-yard run only two-and-a-half minutes after the opening kickoff.
Sutty, known for his intensity and his distaste towards losing, once again delivered the goods by accumulating 139 rushing yards, 37 receiving yards, 1 touchdown and also provided us with one of the funkiest touchdown celebrations we’ve ever seen (yes, he was actually swimming!). The offensive series that led to our number 20 opening the scoring took only 39 seconds, but that was all the time needed for our never-give-up ball carrier to prove that he was not going to go down without a fight.

The excitement didn’t end there. It was then the defence’s turn to shine when Branden Dozier caused a fumble by jarring the ball loose from Eskimo running back C.J. Gable, with teammate Brandon Stewart recovering and racing 55 yards to the end zone for the second Alouettes touchdown of the game.

The Alouettes led 12 – 0 four minutes into the game, and it seemed clear that the team was ready to fight the biggest battle of their season. With 5:47 left in the first quarter, Boris Bede kicked his first field goal of the afternoon, increasing the lead (which at the time we thought was a comfortable one) to 15.

On the plays that led to Bede’s three points – a 40-yard punt return by Stefan Logan, a spectacular catch by T.J. Graham on a 12-yard pass from Drew Willy, a 17-yard dash by Sutton – the never-say-die spirit that we wanted to see was on full display.

However, Edmonton kept possession for the rest of the first quarter, and after an offensive series that lasted more than five-and-a-half minutes, Gable, who was not done for the day, opened the scoring for the Eskies. It was 15 – 7 after an entertaining first quarter.

And that’s what has to be the most disappointing aspect of this game, and without a doubt very hard for the players to swallow… players who gave their body and soul on the field: To ultimately go from a 15-point lead to defeat, putting an end to any hopes of advancing to the playoffs.

Edmonton started the second quarter with three points courtesy of a Swayze Waters field goal. And even though the lead was narrowed, the Montreal offence appeared to have no intention of slowing down. Responding to the Waters field goal, Boris Bede connected for a 31-yard field goal after a 2 minute and 33 second drive which included yet another impressive run (41 yards this time) by Tyrell Sutton.
However, it didn’t take long for Mike Reilly to engineer two drives to retake the lead, with a touchdown pass to Gable, followed by a 29-yard one to Brandon Zylstra. Two unanswered Eskimo touchdowns and our Alouettes had lost their lead. Completing his third field goal of the game, Bede reduced the Eskimo lead to two points, making the score 23 – 21 just before halftime.
While the first half was encouraging, the loss of momentum as the game went on in the second half was difficult to watch. The crowd that braved the rainy conditions continued to have hope throughout the third quarter, especially five minutes after the break when Brandon Stewart made a sensational interception.
Although Bede was able to make yet another field goal that gave the Alouettes a momentary lead, Stewart’s pick did not amount to more points.

The key going forward? “We need to start thinking about the future now because the future started today, the moment this game ended,” Reed said. And what did he think about players like John Bowman, who was very emotional on the sidelines after the game? “We need more players like him. Guys who have passion and fire.”

Credits:

Montrealalouettes.com // Dominick Gravel

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