Strike pulled rug from under Lions' rookies
Four-day stoppage meant less time for first-year and new players to showcase their skills
The B.C. Lions' training camp was firing on all cylinders when rookies reported to Kamloops last week, but all that momentum stalled when the league work stoppage threw a rod in the CFL season.
Now that a proposed deal is awaiting ratification and the strike has been lifted, the Lions are back to full throttle. But the rookies are hoping they don't get left behind.
The four-day strike has meant teams have to condense their pre-season planning, but it also means less time for the first-year or new players to showcase their skills. Coaches will lean on the veteran players who are known quantities and know the playbook over those who don't.
“I was glad we got the rookie camp in, because it's gonna give those guys a better chance,” said head coach Rick Campbell. “But there's no question that each training camp day lost is big. It's not like just a regular-season practice; it's a whole day of meetings, practising, and doing a lot of learning and evaluating.”
The Lions released five players before camp last Sunday, and currently have 92 players at Hillside Stadium in Kamloops. More bodies will be shed this weekend. The team has to be down to 75 players before midnight the day after their first pre-season game. For the Leos, that's Saturday, May 28, in Calgary.
Rookie Kevin Thompson, who was the only quarterback in camp, showed well, as did offensive lineman Jarell Broxton, who made the team out of camp last year but tore his bicep in his first game and missed the rest of the season. Campbell also liked what he saw from his drafted defensive linemen like Nathan Cherry, Joshua Archibald and Global player Karlis Brauns.
“I'm impressed with the rookies so far,” said Campbell. “There was a point of emphasis, especially when we signed the free agents in the off-season ... we wanted to get more depth Canadian and global-wise because we want to be able to rotate (defensive linemen).
“Those guys did a good job in rookie camp and they're gonna get every opportunity to rep with the veteran group and we're hoping that a couple of those guys come out of that and are ready to help contribute in a rotation right away.”
The Lions are a young team, but an experienced one. There are plenty of returnees from both sides of the ball, and they'll be hard for the newcomers to unseat. Quarterback Nathan Rourke rued the missed time, but said the team's continuity will help them navigate the issues quickly.
“I think that every rep that I get is valuable. It would have been great to have those reps. I certainly feel like I need them,” he said Thursday. “But at the same time, I think that this group is such a veteran group that ... we'll hit the field today and hit it running. I don't think there's going to be much of a delay. I think we're gonna get right after it. I think it's going to be a pretty seamless transition.”
Veteran defensive back T.J. Lee made a point of talking with the rookies and first-year players about not letting the work stoppage affect their mentality while they were uncertain about both the league's future and their own, and not to let it make them lose focus.
“We talked about the shortterm pain for long-term gain,” he said. “And (we) tried to stress to them as much as possible how important it is for them to hop along with us, and take our side because they don't realize how much this impacts their future.”
The proposed CBA, the framework of which was agreed on after weeks of contentious talks, hadn't been ratified through a vote by the players and the league's governors as of noon Friday.
David Mackie, the Lions' fullback and CFL Players Association representative for the team, stressed on Thursday that all the players be completely aware of the new CBA and what it entails.
“At the end of the day, a long-term deal ties us into something that if it's not going the right way, we know we're stuck with it for seven years,” he said. “Seven years doesn't seem all that long of a deal, but for a playing career where your average career is one year ... seven can be pretty long.
“So we want to really make sure we understand the depth of it and how that's gonna affect us for seven years of our life ... “