Chris O'Leary
Edmonton Journal

EDMONTON -- Injured players practising and trash-talking billboards on the enemy's turf can only mean one thing: It's time for the Labour Day Classic.

Fred Stamps and Adarius Bowman were on the field on Thursday, as the injured Eskimos receivers worked out with their teammates at Commonwealth Stadium.

While Bowman was expected back this week after cracking his ribs in a Canadian Football League game against the Calgary Stampeders on July 16, Stamps is looking to make his return a week earlier than expected.

Stamps had emergency abdominal surgery on Aug. 5 and was supposed to be sidelined for four to six weeks, with the post-Labour Day rematch with Calgary next Friday being the earliest possible return date for the Eskimos' best set of hands.

"What happened with Fred and Adarius is we did practise them on Tuesday and had a bit of a setback," Eskimos head coach Kavis Reed said before the team took to the field on Thursday.

Stamps acknowledged the setback before practice, saying it was frustrating. The setback appeared to be minimal.

On Thursday, Stamps was running hard but taking minimal contact, while Bowman went full-out, making catches and taking a few spills from teammates on the Eskimoss defence.

With the elongated break from the bye week, the Eskimos had seven full days to prepare for Monday's Labour Day game against the Stampeders.

Reed said he used Monday and Tuesday as days to rest slightly injured players and, apparently, to test out some who might be close to returning from injury.

"We knew we had extra days and we figured that those extra days would help our trainers to get out before and during practice and see where (injured guys) are before we got them in and pushed them," Reed said.

Throwing off the Stampeders could be a part of the plan, as well.

The Eskimos (5-3) are determined to end their three-game losing streak, and a win over the red-hot Stamps (6-2) would take a world of pressure off of the Green and Gold. It would also enable the Esks to climb back into a tie for first place in the West Division with Calgary.

Plus, it's the biggest game of the season, outside of the playoffs.

That's why the Eskimos marketing department took out a billboard in Calgary this week, planting a bring-it-on taunting-style poster in front of every fan who enters McMahon Stadium on Monday.

Never mind that the Stampeders currently have a convincing advantage in the annual clash of Alberta's teams, winning four of the last five Labour Day games.

With that and the recent struggles of the Eskimos offence, having scored a combined five points in the last two games, Stamps and Bowman are desperately needed back in the fold.

Bowman has 15 receptions for 248 yards this season and one touchdown. At six-foot-three and 223 pounds, he's also been a valuable component without the ball in his hands, with strong blocking ability.

Stamps was on track for a career season before suffering his abdominal injury in Winnipeg. He had 33 catches for what was a league-leading 619 yards and five touchdowns.

Courtesy: www.edmontonjournal.com