THE CANADIAN PRESS

OAKVILLE, Ont. -- Justin Medlock had some improvising to do at the Oakville Soccer Club on Thursday afternoon after a deluge of rain forced the Toronto Argonauts to move their practice indoors.

While the facility was comfortably dry on an inescapably wet day, it lacked uprights for the recently re-acquired kicker to put balls through, leaving him to target the middle of some support beams holding up the field's low roof.

"Just don't hit the lights," yelled one coach. "This isn't the NFL, we can't afford it."

No problem there, as smooth as silk, Medlock twice hit his mark before turning to special teams co-ordinator Mike O'Shea to say, "I don't think we even need any more. I feel great out here."

It's been a while since the 26-year-old from Fremont, Calif., last said that. He rejoined the Argos on Wednesday, signing a contract that runs through the 2011 season, after getting cut by the Washington Redskins and, following a very short stint, the Detroit Lions earlier this summer.

Particularly frustrating was that as a left-foot kicker, he felt unable to find a groove with holders used to right-footers. Some NFL teams told him they wouldn't even bother trying out a left-footer, but the Redskins gave him a shot and signed him to a futures deal in February.

Only he and holder Josh Bidwell, a veteran punter and former Pro Bowler, never found a comfort zone, and Medlock believes he didn't get a fair shake in competition for the placekicker's job won by Graham Gano. He was waived June 14, claimed a day later by Detroit and waived again two weeks later before returning to the Argos.

With linebacker Kevin Eiben holding for him again, his mind is now free.

"I can tell right now the operation is just smooth, and that's a good thing," Medlock said after practice. "Any kicker in this business, they can't worry about the operation.

"(With the Redskins) it really was just a tough operation. It wasn't like there was a head and shoulders leader in that competition, but you could obviously tell there were some problems on our side. It was kind of frustrating because I felt like I was hitting the ball pretty well, then the operation just didn't feel good."

While it seems straightforward, kicking a field goal is actually a fairly complex task with many different parts needing to work in unison for success. The centre must deliver a good snap to the holder, who must snare it, spin the laces away and plant the ball quickly without disrupting the kicker's timing.

For Bidwell, working with Medlock meant he had to do everything from the opposite side and he wasn't comfortable with it.

"He's a great guy, he's been holding in the league for a righty for like 13, 14 years," said Medlock. "He used to tell me, 'When I'm holding for a righty, I can think about my golf game. When I have to hold for you, I have to actually think about it, I'm overthinking it.' So that's not a good thing."

Medlock's plan was to practise with Bidwell in Oregon before training camp opened but the weather didn't co-operate. He felt uneasy about his chances of sticking in the NFL from that point on.

"I was talking to my agent about it and I said, 'If I don't work with him I'm going to have no shot going into camp,'" said Medlock. "After a couple of practices (with Washington) I knew things needed to shape up a little bit."

They didn't, and now he's back in Toronto.

"This feels good because with these guys here the operation is so smooth," he said. "Eiben is such a good holder, to be honest I think going to a righty for him it's almost like everybody going to a lefty for me. That's what's different.

"I came back, first day, and was like, 'Man, this is good.'"

The Argos feel that way too, after watching linebacker Grant Shaw miss 10 of his 29 field goal attempts in the first 10 games of the season. By comparison, Medlock was second in the CFL last season by making 40 of his 46 tries, an 87 per cent success rate.

That's a nice insurance policy for the offence to have in its back pocket if it can't get into the end zone.

"It's comforting on the team's part that when we get to midfield, we're guaranteed at least three points," said running back Jeff Johnson. "Grant has done a great job for us up this point, but he's just learning and developing.

"Having a guy like Medlock teaching him is going to help him and us."

That may come in handy Sunday when the Argos (5-5) host the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (3-7) at Rogers Centre (TSN, 1 p.m. ET).

The Boatmen will be without Cory Boyd, the league's leading rusher with 903 yards, and will instead likely go with a running back by committee featuring Johnson, Bryan Crawford and Andre Durie.

"We're not worried about that position for us," said head coach Jim Barker. "We lose Cory Boyd but we had a week to prepare without him and we'll be much better prepared for Sunday than when we were when he went down last week."

If things are close, Medlock may get a chance to make an instant impact. He feels good about that.

"I had a great time here last year, good memories," he said. "I'm just going to do my job."

Notes: The Argos may have Jeremaine Copeland back Sunday after the slotback sat out the last three games with a dislocated elbow. He practised Thursday and head coach Jim Barker sounded cautiously optimistic about his chances. "If everything goes well hopefully he'll be in the lineup on Sunday but we can't commit to that yet," he said. "He's a huge boost." OT Chris Van Zeyl is also on the bubble but running back Ryan Christian was placed on the nine-game injured list with a broken hand. ... Christian's injury led to the addition of running back Anthony Alridge. "He gives us a little bit of a different dimension," said Barker. "He's a tailback with some speed, he catches the ball well out of the backfield ... he's a talented player." ... Receiver Chad Lucas, defensive back Sammy Joseph and fullback Peter Quinney were cut.