Reader here, and what a win for the Green and White on Saturday!
Just when it was looking bleak, and like Nathan Rourke and the Lions were going to the 112th Grey Cup this Sunday, cue the comeback…
With some last minute heroics courtesy of Trevor Harris and Tommy Nield, the Saskatchewan Roughiders pulled out a 24-21 victory, to send the good guys back to the Grey Cup for the first time since 2013, and I am ready for it!
Of course, the 2013 Grey Cup was the last time the Riders won it all, and that game has some special memories for me, as I was there to see it!
My ticket for the 2013 Grey Cup at Old Mosaic Stadium!
Still, to this day, the best $303 I ever spent!
My view that day?
My view of the 2013 Grey Cup from Section 202, Row 22, Seat 27!
To this day, it’s the only Grey Cup game I’ve ever been to, and I didn’t even get my ticket until about two or three days before the game.
At the time, I really wanted to go, but I wasn’t sure if I could justify the expense, and I hummed and hawed over it. Finally, I decided that I’d take the plunge. After all… having the opportunity to see the Green and White play against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the Grey Cup? On their home field (and the only time at the old stadium?) I had to go for it!
The funny thing is, just a couple of weeks before the big game, I went to the West Semifinal with my Auntie Marie, where the Riders beat B.C., 29-25, and it remains to this day, the absolute coldest game I’ve ever been to. I thought I was dressed warmly, but it wasn’t enough!
So I made sure I was bundled up for the Grey Cup game itself. And all week leading up to the game, it was looking like it was going to be a frozen final. But, it actually turned out to be a beautiful day, and I was sweating a ton, because of all the extra layers and bot warmers I employed.
But it was all good, because what a time it was!
The Sheepdogs performed a couple of songs before the game, Serena Ryder performed the national anthem, and the halftime show featured snowmobiles ripping around on the turf, doing a ton of tricks (which is about as Saskatchewan as it gets, right?)
Not only that, Hamilton native (and Ti-Cat fan) Martin Short was in the house with his pal Tom Hanks, and they both got to experience Rider Pride first hand.
The first clue that the game was going to be something special, was during the player introductions, when they Riders decided to forego the individual player introductions, and take the field as a team…
Awesome.
That set the tone, and the Roughriders were off and running, and when I say running, I mean RUNNING, as Rider running back Kory Sheets earned the Grey Cup MVP award, with a record 197 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Care to relive some highlights?
Legendary slotback Geroy Simon also played his final CFL season with the Riders, and scored his first two Grey Cup TDs in the win.
Perhaps the weirdest thing about that Grey Cup win? As a Rider fan, we’re used to sweating things out, right to the end. But this game was never in doubt.
The Riders led 31-6 at halftime, and never looked back. The outcome was never in doubt, so the whole second half was a big party in the stands, just waiting for the final gun!
Now, the Riders head into the 112th Grey Cup this weekend, against the Montreal Alouettes, who beat Hamilton, 19-16 in the East Final, to advance.
Not going to lie… after the bitter taste left by the 2009 and 2010 Grey Cups, in which the Als beat the Riders, I was hoping we’d get another crack at Montreal, with a chance to set things right.
I won’t dredge up the memories of those two games, especially the ’09 game (I will forever dread penalties for too many men!)
And as a bonus, Trevor Harris gets to square off against the team he left, in order to come west!
I can’t wait for Sunday… Let’s go, Riders!!!
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