Ward’s field-goal streak ends at 69 in loss to Ticats

OTTAWA — No one can blame Rick Campbell for being frustrated with his football club.

The Ottawa Redblacks head coach couldn’t hide his feelings following another loss, this one a 21-7 defeat at the hands of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Saturday.

Ottawa (3-6) is now 1-6 in its last seven after opening the year with back-to-back wins.

“We’re obviously having trouble scoring,” said Campbell. “There are a lot of good players and coaches and good people that are trying and working hard, but we are certainly not doing the fun part of the game and the necessary part of the game, which is making plays and scoring points.”

The Tiger-Cats (7-2) earned their fourth win in their last five outings, to comfortably sit atop the East Division standings. They share the best record in the Canadian Football League with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

“We didn’t play our cleanest game, but we found a way to win,” said Hamilton head coach Orlondo Steinauer. “We hung in there. We found a way to make plays when we needed to.”

Redblacks kicker Lewis Ward saw his record field-goal streak of 69 come to an end when he missed a 31-yard attempt wide right in the first quarter. His record is 30 more than the next longest streak, and is an impressive feat for the second-year kicker. He hadn’t missed a field goal since last year’s season opener.

Dominique Davis finished 20 for 40 for 238 yards, while backup Jonathan Jennings, who played part of the second quarter, was 2 for 6 for 31 yards. If not for a couple big passes in the second half, Davis’s numbers could have been much worse.

Once again the Redblacks fell short in time of possession and needed to rely on their defence. The defence held off Hamilton in the first half, as Antoine Pruneau intercepted a Dane Evans pass in the end zone and later stopped Hamilton deep in the red zone, forcing the Ticats to settle for a field goal.

DL Ettore Lattanzio admitted it’s tough not to feel some frustration as the offence sputters, but says it’s crucial for the team to stand united through this stretch.

Evans was 24 for 39 for 299 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.

A 4-1 Tiger-Cats lead at the break made for a less than exciting first half.

The Tiger-Cats scored the game’s first touchdown as David Watford had a one-yard run to take an 11-1 lead early in the third. Ottawa finally gave fans something to cheer when Davis connected with Dominique Rhymes for a 47-yard pass, but settled for a 26-yard field goal to make it 11-4.

The Redblacks caught a break when Anthony Cioffi intercepted Evans in the end zone. A penalty was called for pass interference, but Ottawa challenged and upon review it was waived off.

Ottawa kept clawing its way back and made it 11-7 early in the fourth, after Ward connected on a 40-yard field goal.

Hamilton took control midway through the fourth after Jaelon Acklin was able to run in an 11yard TD.

The Redblacks then had a miscommunication when Davis tried to make a lateral pass to Caleb Holley. Holley got a hand on it, but didn’t realize it was a live ball after it dropped and the TigerCats were able to regain control at Ottawa’s 17. Three plays later they kicked a 21-yard field goal to take a 21-7 lead.