Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
VANCOUVER — In the third quarter, the BC Lions lost their focus. In the fourth, they got it back. Just in the nick of time.
The Lions scored 18 unanswered points in the final 15 minutes on Friday night at BC Place, earning them a thrilling 45-42 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in a wild west showdown.
In a tale of two quarters, it was the Lions’ resilience that led them to their fourth straight win and first victory at home of 2017.
“Our club’s been resilient all year,” said Head Coach and General Manager Wally Buono. “Today was different. The position we put ourselves in was, in my mind, very undisciplined, and it hurt us. Yet, for some reason, the guys were able to keep their focus.
“It wasn’t pretty but at the end of it we get paid to win, we get paid to entertain and we did both of those things tonight.”
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Travis Lulay lunges for what would become the game-tying touchdown (Johany Jutras/CFL.ca)
For the fans, Friday’s rematch of the Western Semi-Final marked another thrilling finish in what’s quickly becoming one of the CFL’s most exciting matchups. For coaches, it’s enough to make them pull out their hair.
The Lions stormed out of the gate with an early touchdown by Emmanuel Arceneaux to make it 6-0, eventually leading by as many as 13 points approaching halftime. But after Chris Rainey’s two-yard touchdown run made it 27-14 with little time left in the second quarter, the momentum swing began.
Darvin Adams’ seven-yard touchdown grab in the first half’s final minute spurred a run of 27 straight points for the visiting Bombers, giving Winnipeg a 42-27 lead heading to the fourth quarter in front of a silent and stunned BC Lions crowd.
“I’m not sure in the third quarter we didn’t lose our focus,” Buono told reporters after the game. “A lot of missed tackles. A lack of aggression on tackling. There was way too much of that and at the end of it, you can’t play defence that way at all.”
And in the fourth quarter the Lions didn’t. While the Lions’ defence forced four straight two-and-outs against Matt Nichols and the Bomber offence, Arceneaux’s second touchdown of the night made it a one-score game.
Travis Lulay‘s 14-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter tied the game, with the help of Arceneaux’s two-point conversion, while Ty Long’s 34-yard field goal with 56 seconds left gave BC the lead back.
Then, just like in last year’s Western Semi-Final, Justin Medlock’s potential game-tying field goal — this one from 50 yards out — fell short of the goal post.
Travis Lulay and Emmanuel Arceneaux celebrate after tying the game in the fourth (The Canadian Press)
Lulay finished his first start of the season with 404 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions on 28-of-43 passing, in addition to 14 yards and a touchdown on the ground. In two games this season, the veteran backup has combined for 840 passing yards while racking up a pair of wins.
But for Buono, the biggest stat to come from Friday’s outing is the victory at home. The Lions move into a tie with Edmonton (4-0) for first in the West at 4-1 while improving to 1-1 at BC Place.
“A great comeback for our team, a great comeback for our offence,” said the CFL’s all-time coaching wins leader. “We have to win at home. It’s important to win at home. Two losses at home would have been tough.
“The fans were lively, the stands looked a lot fuller,” Buono added. “Obviously when they go home, they’re going to feel good about what happened. They were entertained, there were a lot of big plays, it was back and forth, it was exciting. It was wild.
“If I’m a fan, I’m feeling like I got my money’s worth. If I’m a head coach, I’m losing my mind.”
You guessed it — while the Lions get the all-important ‘W’, Buono will have plenty of teaching points for his team this week. The Lions were penalized nine times for 63 yards and turned the football over twice on interceptions.
And next Friday, Buono’s club visits Commonwealth Stadium for a first-place clash with the Edmonton Eskimos.
