Blue bombers storm past Alouettes in game delayed by nearly 2 hours due to heavy rain

The Montreal Alouettes’ two-game undefeated streak came to an abrupt end on Saturday night as they dropped a 17-3 decision to the dominant Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

The other major problem for the Als was a two-hour delay as torrential rain and lightning forced the CFL to reschedule the start of the Canada Day game.

“It was probably one of the tougher games I’ve ever been a part of,” Alouette’s starting quarterback Cody Fajardo said of the delay that left everyone, including the players, wondering if Saturday’s game between the Als and Blue Bombers would take place at all. .

It wasn’t until 8:50 p.m. ET that play started without the pre-game fanfare scheduled for the Alouettes’ first Canada Day game at home.

While the Alouettes fought hard, guts wasn’t enough to keep them in the game against arguably their strongest opponent yet.

Winnipeg went up 7-0 in the first quarter and a series of offensive errors on the part of the Alouettes, combined with a rock solid defense from Winnipeg, meant the Blue Bombers would hold the lead until the end.

An important point of contention for the Alouettes was to keep possession. Turnover kept them low for most of the game.

“Fighting will only get you so far,” Fajardo said. “I had a terrible choice in the red zone, which hurt us there. I know we had a fumble when we were driving, just a lot of chances that we kind of squandered.”

Add to that the pre-match uncertainty, last minute lineup changes and poor playing conditions and it was not normal for the Alouettes.

“There are a lot of external factors that we just had to cut out during the play,” Fajardo admitted. “It wasn’t just ‘going out and playing football’ as it normally is.”

Trailing 10-0 to start the second half, the Alouettes desperately needed an offensive boost to get things going. Gaining 20 yards on their first two plays, the Als crept into the Winnipeg defensive zone, but lost possession on a fumble forced by Winnipeg’s Deatrick Nicholls.

“It was difficult to score points tonight,” said Fajardo. “It’s very hard to get the ball moving in those elements and it’s very hard to stay on the pitch. In those situations I felt like the substitutions caused us to knock ourselves out.”

When the Blue Bombers had the ball, they were a force to be reckoned with. While they matched the Alouettes in effort, they totally beat them when it came to execution. Winnipeg native Brady Oliveira, in particular, did an outstanding job of keeping his team in enemy territory, totaling 112 yards rushing on the night.

Things finally appeared to turn in the Alouettes’ favor late in the third quarter with an impressive 65-yard pass from Fajardo to receiver Kaion Julien-Grant that left the Alouettes fans hoping the team had found its offensive spark, but the entry until the match was declined. end zone with a great interception by Winnipeg defenseman Brandon Alexander that was returned 62 yards putting them right back where they started.

“I have to give them credit,” Maas said of the bombers’ defensive capabilities. “They are able to create pressure.”

Midway through the fourth quarter, the Alouettes managed to get on the scoreboard when rookie receiver Austin Mack pushed into the end zone to take advantage of a 20-yard pass from Fajardo. On review, the pass was ruled incomplete, but the home side still managed to make something of their possession with a 27-yard field goal from kicker David Cote.

As the Alouettes attempted to create an additional offense to close out the game, Winnipeg held them off to secure a 17-3 win, breaking not one but two Alouettes streaks in the process.

With the Alouettes taking on the BC Lions in Week 5, Coach Jason Maas and quarterback Cody Fajardo both said they’ll put this loss behind them and go back to the drawing board so the Alouettes can get a little started into next game’s game. week more efficient in attack.

“We’re going to watch the movie, we’re going to bury it and next week we’ll have another chance,” Fajardo said.