Courtesy Regina Leader Post:

Saskatchewan Roughriders guard Mike Abou-Mechrek is contributing a daily diary as part of the Leader-Post’s Grey Cup coverage. In the second instalment, Abou Mechrek discusses the first day of practice in his hometown of Toronto, along with Winnipeg Blue Bombers quarterback Ryan Dinwiddie — who is to start against Saskatchewan in Sunday’s Grey Cup due to a broken arm suffered by Bombers pivot Kevin Glenn in the East Division final.

TORONTO — Wednesday’s practice was when we went back to work. It was singularly focused on getting one goal done and committing to one task. That’s our only focus.

The only reason you play football is to win the last game of the season. If you don’t win the last one, no one’s going to remember it.

This is why we practise in the heat in August. This is why we train in January. This is why we wear these pads and why we don’t have office jobs with secretaries. This is why we play the game.

It was really good getting out here for practice. Things have been kind of crazy. Monday was ridiculous with getting ready to come out here. Tuesday was a zoo — getting up super early and flying here, getting situated, and seeing who you needed to see. It was really good just to step between the lines and get used to the surroundings here.

This is the same field we’ve got back home. It’s the same one we beat B.C. on in the West Division final. The dimensions are the same. It was good to get back into things. You line up on the same spot that you line up on every day. It was good to be back to practice and back to normal.

I don’t think you can look at it as “the Grey Cup.” You put too much pressure on yourself. This is the same game that I played at Humberside Collegiate down the road. It’s the same game we played last week in B.C. You have to prepare the same way. If you don’t prepare the same way, you cheated yourself last week.

Being here and just being around town, everyone has got their own reason for how we’re going to win. The cab driver had one. My dad was looking me in the eyes and saying, “You know what you guys have to do? You have to try hard.” All right. Thanks, Dad.

My sister doesn’t even know what football is, but she’s like, “You guys have to just work hard and you have to do this …” Everyone has their own two cents to put in. That’s part of the game.

For some reason, everyone thinks we’re going to walk over them because Kevin Glenn is out, but they couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s one game.

Ryan Dinwiddie’s a baller. I didn’t think very much of him at first when I was there in Winnipeg last year because he doesn’t really look the part. Then I started watching him more and more and, like I said, he’s a baller. He can throw that rock around. He’s a great player. I had to eat my words. I told him that at the end of the year.

He’s probably more technically sound than Kevin is, if you look at it. He just has to win one game. He doesn’t have to come in and do big flips and circles and win 12 games in a row. He has to win one game and anything can happen. That’s why we prepare like we do — because we know we’re facing a tough opponent.

It starts here at practice. It doesn’t start on Sunday.