Photo: Edmonton Elks
EDMONTON — A good half-hour after he stepped off of the field, Abdul Kanneh was still feeling the rush of what he’d done on Saturday night.
The Ottawa REDBLACKS’ defensive back wasn’t wearing a cape, but very few would have questioned him if he were. In a gritty, grimy, defensive battle of a game, Kanneh had come out on top in Ottawa’s 16-12 season-opening win over the Edmonton Elks.
“We did what we’ve been doing all camp,” Kanneh said. “Flying to the ball, communicating, helping each other out.
“We started slow a little bit, but coach Benne (defensive coordinator Mike Benevides) put us in the right situation. Coach Benne had their number all game. Every time they called something, he was ready to go.”
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You could argue that Kanneh had the same sixth-sense about his opponents on Saturday, especially as the game got to its most important moments. He’d already intercepted Trevor Harris once by the time the game got into crunch time, when it was still just a kickers’ duel between Ottawa’s Lewis Ward and Edmonton’s Sean Whyte.
Edmonton’s offensive roster is a celestial one, loaded with all-stars and an MOP-calibre quarterback in Harris. When he marched the Elks into Ottawa’s red zone, it felt like it was a matter of time before the game’s touchdown drought would end. He threw to Shai Ross, who had the ball bounce out of his hands and into Kanneh’s. He was gone, 102 yards in the other direction before just about anyone else knew what had happened.
“The only thing that was going through my mind was that I better not get caught because my sons and my little nephew is going to be making fun of me all day sending me stuff…I had to bring it home…so I could dance with my team, dance with my boys and feel that love that we’ve been missing for the last year-and-a-half.”
His touchdown made it a 16-12 game, but Harris was determined to get his team back in front. He got them into scoring position twice more, but the REDBLACKS managed to put up walls around him each time. Randall Evans picked him off the first time and on Edmonton’s last drive of the night, Kanneh was the last body between fullback James Tuck and the goal line. Kanneh made the tackle.
“We spent a lot of time working on that, making sure we understand not to give up explosive (plays) and also put ourselves in a position to get takeaways,” REDBLACKS head coach Paul LaPolice said.
“I think our defence did that, obviously. Then offensively, we didn’t turn the ball over once.”
It may not have been the debut that Matt Nichols envisioned for himself, but he walked out of Commonwealth Stadium — the place he started his CFL career in 2011 — with a win.
“I’m not worried about our guys,” Nichols said of the offence.
“We’ll be in the right spots and do our things and put more points on the board. We’re going to enjoy this. It’s going to be ugly sometimes. I’m happy to get that first one out of the way after two years of not playing football and try to get this next one.”
