Bob Irving
CFL.ca
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers just might write a new chapter in the CFL record book this year. Unfortunately for them, it will be a little known record for futility.
The Bombers 16-14 loss in Vancouver on Saturday night marked the third straight time they had lost by four points or less. And it was the sixth time this season they have tasted defeated by four points or fewer.
The league record for gut-wrenching losses of four points or fewer in a single season is seven. The 1993 Ottawa Rough Riders and the 1996 B.C. Lions each lost seven games by margins of four and under. With five games left, unless they lose their competitive edge or unless they start figuring out how to win the close ones, the Bombers could well shatter that mark.
Saturday’s setback at Empire field was, without question, more difficult to swallow than some of the other ones simply due to the magnitude of the game as its impact on the Bombers’ playoff hopes. A win would have tied Winnipeg with B.C. at 4-9 and given the Bombers a great shot at a cross-over playoff spot. A loss and they were in deep, deep trouble as far as their playoff aspirations were concerned.
The Bombers ran out to a 10-0 first quarter lead as they dominated the first half. But, as in earlier meltdowns, you could almost feel the tide turn late in the second quarter when the Bombers messed up on a chance to really take control of the game.
After marching the ball to the Lions 27-yard line, Bomber quarterback Steven Jyles fumbled the football while trying to escape pressure, and although the Bombers recovered the ball, they did so back on the B.C. 53-yard line. That 26-yard loss took the Bombers out of scoring range, and while they still held on to their 10-0 lead, I’m sure the 23,000 fans at Empire Field could actually feel a shift in the game’s momentum.
The shift became more pronounced early in the third quarter when Jyles underthrew Brock Ralph on a deep ball, and David Hyland intercepted. Hyland returned the pick to the 55-yard line, and six plays later, Travis Lulay ran in from 10 yards out, putting the Lions on the board for the first time and changing the entire complexion of the game.
Fast forward to the fourth quarter, and Winnipeg’s unraveling reached a crescendo. Justin Palardy missed a 29-yard field goal, Greg Carr dropped a pass at the B.C. 10-yard line that cost the Bombers a chance to go in for a touchdown.
After Winnipeg regained the lead at 14-13 with just over five minutes to play, Lulay put together a 12-play, 77-yard, five minute and 11 second drive that produced a game winning 19-yard Paul McCallum field goal with 12 seconds left.
It was a replica of most of the other close Bomber losses this season. In the dying minutes, when they needed their offence, or their defence to come up with a big play, they couldn’t do it.
So, the Bombers are very unlucky. Or they just aren’t good enough. Or, they are simply victims of the vagaries of sport, and in particular the sport of football, where little things make a big difference and sometimes there is no rational way to explain why one team is on the wrong side of the line while the other team winds up on the right side.
I would suggest it’s a combination of all of the above. One thing that is not in dispute—The Bombers, at 3-10, will need to somehow author a dramatic reversal of their fortunes, and have some other teams co-operate with losses, if they are going to find a way into the CFL post-season.
The Bombers and Lions play a rematch on Thanksgiving Monday at Canad-Inns stadium in Winnipeg.
