June 22, 2017

Kicking off the season the right way!

We’ve been waiting not-so-patiently for this day to come! The Alouettes’ regular season home opener, and all the festivities surrounding the game, impressed on all counts. The Yves Lambert Trio, Socalled, Cirque Éloize, the Rouge et Or… all were on the agenda. Many players were certain that the new atmosphere in the locker room was going to be carried onto the field. And with the Als victorious this evening, they spoke the truth. Ladies and gentlemen, what you saw tonight was a team prepared to confront adversity and is more united than ever.

1st quarter – A hard knock defence

We could see that players on both sides of the field were ready to go! Just like our Alouettes, the Riders were visibly excited – – normal, you would say, for the regular season opener. The extraordinary CF-18 flyover set the scene for the battle about to begin. Veteran linebacker Kyries “Angry Bird” Hébert was the first to make a mark with his 27th career sack when he dropped Saskatchewan (and former Montreal) quarterback Kevin Glenn. Tackle after tackle, Alouettes defenders – – especially Henderson, Hawkins, Mincy and Westerman – – were also making some noise of their own, stopping any progress the Riders were attempting to make. But despite the eagerness to get things going, the end zones remained a no man’s land throughout the 1st quarter.

2nd quarter – The Als open the score

The defence’s brilliant performance continued into the 2nd quarter with Jonathon Mincy knocking down two consecutive Kevin Glenn passes. ​Things are going well for the young cornerback who in his rookie year in 2016 had an impressive 56 tackles. While the defense efficiently guarded the nest, the offence remained discrete. B.J. Cunningham finally got the Als in the end zone with just under 5 minutes to play in the 1st half, and he did so in spectacular style. To the crowd’s delight, he caught a 65 yard pass from Darian Durant for his 10th career touchdown reception. But it didn’t take long for the Roughriders to respond in kind. At the 14 minute and 20 second mark, a Kevin Glenn to Bakari Grant pass tied the game at 7, and a field goal moments later gave the Riders a 10 – 7 lead at the end of the 2nd quarter.

3rd quarter – A mighty duo is born

After what we could politely label a “tentative” 1st half, both teams shifted into high gear at the start of the 3rd quarter. Crapigna, the Riders kicker, quickly notched 3 points for the green and white. But the accolades must go to Ernest “Action” Jackson who scored the Als second touchdown after 7 minutes and 7 seconds of play on a 12 yard pass from our talented #4. Boy are we ever happy to have him on our team! And we are even happier to see that Ernest and Darian are already forming a mighty duo.

On the defence, the imposing Gabriel Knapton had 4 tackles. Having a player like this on your team is like having the best insurance policy available. The 3rd quarter ended on a good note for the red, white and blue when Chris Ackie forced Saskatchewan ball carrier Cameron Marshall to fumble and subsequently recovered by our man Greg Henderson. No damage done, Montreal continues to lead 14-13.

4th quarter – THANK YOU Boris

We’re cooking now! The crowd’s going nuts! ​That’s the kind of football game we like to see. You could feel the tension mounting, but our defence was not going to give in. At the 12 minute mark, Jonathon Mincy had a sensational interception, the 24 year old’s 2nd career pick. Greg Henderson maintained his toughness with his 6th tackle of the night. Then, after a field goal gave the Roughriders the lead, the Montreal offence knew what it had to do. An explosive 21 yard run by B.J. Cunningham gave Jacques Chapdelaine’s men great field position at the 47-yard line with over 4 minutes left to play. At this point we were all biting our nails in the stands!  After an inconclusive second down, Boris Bédé comes to the rescue to put the Als back on top 17-16 and saves the day. In a finish that took our breath away, a missed field goal attempt by Crapigna gave the Alouettes the victory and provided even more momentum to the new era! Now THAT’S how we start the football season in Montreal!