Courtesy Regina Leader post:

Mosaic Stadium has become a tough place to play — for the home team.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders would be 0-3 in supposedly friendly territory if not for the leaden hands of B.C. Lions receiver Ryan Grice-Mullen, who dropped what should have been a game-winning touchdown bomb on July 7.

Saskatchewan emerged with a 28-24 victory, only to lose its next two Canadian Football League home games. That is an eyebrow-raising statistic, considering that the Riders lost only twice at home all of last season. The year before, the Green and White went 7-3 on Taylor Field (home playoff game included) en route to winning the Grey Cup.

If the Roughriders are to have any hope of repeating their successes of the past two years, some home improvement is warranted — beginning on Sunday, when the Hamilton Tiger-Cats are the guests for a 5 p.m. game.

“These are the best fans in the league,” Roughriders quarterback Darian Durant said of the home crowd. “They definitely deserve to see a show and they definitely deserve to see a win, by any means necessary.”

Failing that, Roughriders fans will be lamenting a third successive home defeat during one season for the first time since 2001. That year, Saskatchewan won its opener and finale at home, but lost its other seven games at Taylor Field.

In any other year, a victory over Hamilton would be a mortal lock. Not this time around. Hamilton boasts a 4-2 record — compared to Saskatchewan’s 3-3 slate — and a formidable team on both sides of the ball.

The Tiger-Cats’ offensive line is vastly improved — a contrast to a patchwork Roughriders unit.

Hamilton’s Deandra’ Cobb is the CFL’s most exciting running back. Saskatchewan counters with Wes Cates, a reputable back in his own right, but he has been unable to consistently establish the run.

Cobb will enjoy a massive game unless the Roughriders can somehow repel the run. Matador run defence has contributed to the fact that Saskatchewan is allowing a league-worst 33.2 points per game (compared to Hamilton’s 21.8).

Mind you, the offence’s propensity for two-and-outs has put the defence in some hopeless positions. Conversely, the tendency of the Roughriders defence to create turnovers — a welcome change — has given the offence some advantageous field position. So raw data can be deceiving, to an extent.

But sometimes, the eyes do not lie. You see the Roughriders’ defence line up in wide splits and quickly surmise that the offensive line is not necessarily obligated to open holes. After all, the Riders are creating the gaps on their own.

Defensive co-ordinator Gary Etcheverry has correctly pointed out that Saskatchewan has defended the run in timely fashion in each of its last two games, both on the road.

At home, however, the run defence has been substandard.

Avon Cobourne ran for 145 yards and two touchdowns to help the Montreal Alouettes win 43-10 on July 18. Saskatchewan had not lost at home by such a margin since 1992.

One week after the Montreal game, the Edmonton Eskimos won 38-33 in Regina as tailbacks Calvin McCarty and Arkee Whitlock combined for 139 yards and three touchdowns. The Roughriders were embarrassed on two of those TD runs — a 37-yarder by McCarty and an 18-yarder by Whitlock.

If the Roughriders are left grasping for air by McCarty and Whitlock, what will the slippery Cobb do to them?

This is the CFL, mind you, and things can change from week to week. The games of 2009 have been especially unpredictable. Nonetheless, you have to wonder whether the Riders can quickly make the necessary repairs after losing 35-20 to the Lions eight days ago.

The special teams were abysmal. The offence was erratic. Without excelling, the defence was the strongest element of Saskatchewan’s game in Vancouver, creating turnovers on each of the Lions’ first three possessions.

Now the Roughriders need a turnover of a different sort — a drastic reversal at home versus the purring Tiger-Cats.

“They’re playing really well,” Durant said. “It’s going to be a good test for us. We’re in front of our home fans and that’s going to be big for us.”

Well, it should be, anyway.

Read more….