Kevin Sousa/CFL.ca
HAMILTON – The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are getting ready to play their second of two pre-season games after coming off a 25-23 win over the Montreal Alouettes just a week ago.
Hamilton allowed just 16 rushing yards on 12 attempts in their win over the Als, something that veteran defensive linemen Dylan Wynn says is a point of pride for the Tabbies.
“That’s good continuity on defence and it’s something we pride ourselves on,” said Wynn of his team’s performance. “We eat our vegetables, we play the run and earn the pass, it’s an emphasis here, but it’s an emphasis on every defence, we just like to put our money where our mouth is.”
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For head coach Orlondo Steinauer, his team’s performance against Montreal provided the coaching staff with an opportunity to evaluate the team and build a solid foundation as they enter their second week of pre-season football.
“It’s great teaching tape overall for the whole team, we still have a lot of work to do,” said Steinauer of the team’s first pre-season win. “We’ve got a baseline now, there’s lots to learn from, it wasn’t all great, it wasn’t all terrible.”
As the Ticats get set to travel to Guelph to take on the provincial rival Toronto Argonauts, Steinauer is all too familiar with the excitement that is intertwined with the rivalry. However, for him and his coaching staff, their goal is to remain focused on finishing training camp and building the best possible roster for the start of the regular season.
Steinauer focusing on his team against the Alouettes (Kevin Sousa/CFL.ca)
“We’re still learning our football team and the strengths and weaknesses,” said Steinauer. “We think there are some good foundational pieces, some things that we planned on going to according to plan have, and then there’s been some great surprises, but you’ve got to play the game, talk is good, practice is good, but there’s always a test at the end of every week.”
Despite the first battle between the Ticats and the Boatmen coming in the pre-season, there is an aura of intensity in the air that provides a feeling of regular season football.
The Tiger-Cats will be kicking off the game with most of their starters in the lineup.The will provide fans with an opportunity to see the likes of Simoni Lawrence, Ted Laurent, Alden Darby, Tim White and veteran offensive linemen Chris Van Zeyl. However, coach Steinauer maintains that the focus for him isn’t on the rivalry, but on developing his team for the regular season.
“It’s really an evaluation game, of course any time you’re playing Toronto there’s always more questions about it, more hype and that’s fine, that’s just part of the deal,” said Steinauer of playing the Argos. “But that’s not the focus, the focus is really the evaluation and seeing who want to bring along for this journey for 2022.”
As the Ticats get set for their second pre-season game, Hamilton will travel to Alumni Stadium in Guelph to face the Argonauts on June 3, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. ET.
– With files from Ticats.ca
