Aug
Alouettes hold off Roughriders
The Saskatchewan Roughriders had to settle for a moral victory instead of one that counts in the CFL standings.
The Riders adopted that stance after losing 34-25 to the Montreal Alouettes on Friday at Molson Stadium. The Alouettes improved to 7-1, good enough for first in the East Division and the league’s best record.
The Riders fell to 4-4, good for at least a tie for second in the West Division, and were feeling pretty good about themselves despite being swept this season by the Alouettes.
“We lost the game,” said Riders defensive end Stevie Baggs, who had a game-high 10 tackles, recorded two sacks and forced a fumble. “We made a statement to ourselves and to the league about the calibre of team that we are. We were able to come into Montreal and fight to the end with them. I knew that we earned some respect with what we did.”
The Riders earned that from the Alouettes, who improved to 4-0 at home.
“We played a championship-calibre team tonight,” said Alouettes head coach Marc Trestman. “It was a 15-round fight and we didn’t quit and neither did they.”
The Riders have yet to prove what calibre of the team they are heading into the bye week. They exhibited some resiliency after rebounding from a 33-17 fourth-quarter deficit to pull within eight points on a 10-yard run by Hugh Charles and two-point convert to slotback Chris Getzlaf.
But it was the same problems that have plagued the Riders throughout the season that got them into that position. The Riders gave up a late first-half touchdown to the Alouettes to trail 19-17 at the half.
Then the Riders’ third-quarter blues returned as the Alouettes scored on a one-yard touchdown pass to Jamel Richardson to open a 26-17 advantage. The Riders have now been outscored 78-7 in the third quarter.
“To hell with the third quarter,” said Riders head coach Ken Miller. “The men played their fannies off. We made more mistakes than they did and our return game wasn’t as good as Montreal’s. There is no such thing as a moral victory but our men sent a message to the rest of the league that the Riders are a team to be reckoned with.”
The Alouettes are that already. Montreal scored on a 68-yard punt return by Larry Taylor to grab an 8-0 lead early in the first quarter. It’s the second punt return the Riders have allowed for a touchdown this season. Tristan Jackson of the Edmonton Eskimos scored on a 65-yard return in Week 4 in Edmonton’s 38-33 victory.
Montreal’s defence also kept the Riders from scoring after three chances from the Alouettes’ one-yard line. Three plays later, Montreal conceded a safety.
Ben Cahoon, Kerry Watkins and Avon Cobourne also scored touchdowns for the Alouettes.
Riders quarterback Darian Durant bounced back from Montreal’s goal-line stand with touchdown passes to Rob Bagg (26 yards) and Gerran Walker (43 yards). Walker’s first touchdown as a member of the Riders provided Saskatchewan with a 17-12 lead.
A nine-yard touchdown pass from Calvillo to Ben Cahoon at 14:27 of the second quarter helped Montreal head into the half with a 19-17 lead.
The Alouettes increased their advantage to 26-16 after Chris Leak, playing in a short-yardage situation, hit Watkins with a one-yard pass.
The Alouettes built on that momentum with a 10-pass to running back Cobourne to increase their lead to 33-17.
Durant was 19-for-31 for 326 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. His favourite target was Weston Dressler, who had eight receptions for 179 yards.
NOTES: Cobourne rushed for 101 yards on 19 carries. Cobourne has rushed for 372 yards on 61 carries in his last three starts against the Riders . . . The Riders are off until Sept. 6, when they play host to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. The Roughriders are to return to practice on Aug. 31 . . . The Alouettes are also off until Sept. 4 when they travel to Vancouver to play the B.C. Lions . . . Friday’s game was the 90th consecutive sellout at Molson Stadium.
