THREE THEMES

| BLUE BOMBERS @ LIONS

12 ANGRY MEN

After the CFL admitted one of its officials blew a call that cost the Blue Bombers a chance to beat the Calgary Stampeders (Sept. 25), Winnipeg suffered another gut-wrenching defeat on Oct. 3 against Edmonton on Sean Whyte’s 53-yard, last-play field goal. Despite a suggestion by Winnipeg Sun columnist Paul Friesen that the Blue Bombers are the “happiest 4-10 team on the planet,” equanimous head coach Mike O’Shea, pictured, insisted Friday that’s not the case. “Nobody’s happy with where they’re at. They’re angry. But that emotion is going to allow you to prepare for the next opponent.”

KEEP THE LID ON

Lions GM Wally Buono took flak for having the BC Place Stadium roof closed last Saturday in perfect weather for fall football. “Fans come to see the stars on the field, not the stars in the sky,” Buono contends. Still, if anybody is asking, coach Jeff Tedford, pictured, prefers the shuttered look, too. He points out the undulating roof at Investors Group Field in Winnipeg has been designed to maximize crowd noise. “I felt the environment last game (against Saskatchewan) was an advantage,” Tedford said. “I told our fans (on radio) I appreciated that. We need it again.”

NO BALL FOR YOU

In his experience as the Lions’ special teams captain, eightyear veteran Jason Arakgi, pictured, can’t remember another instance when he didn’t award a game ball, given to a player who does something impressive to help win the game. The Lions did win, convincingly, but porous coverage allowed the Roughriders to rack up 305 yards in kickoff returns last Saturday. Next up is the Blue Bombers’ Troy Stoudermire, the CFL’s second-leading kick returner. “It was done (no game ball) to send a message,” Arakgi explained. “We didn’t play well. And we need to play well in all three facets of the game.”