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Insight and Analysis August 28, 2025

Bombers, Riders share nice things about OK Tire Labour Day Weekend rival

TORONTO — The OK Tire Labour Day Weekend rivalry between the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers is very notorious.

Fans of both teams circle their calendar on the date that the Bombers travel to Regina to take on the Riders. The stadium is louder, the stakes are higher and everyone wants to come out on top.

That extends beyond just the audiences, reaching all the way to the players who are literally on the trenches when the game begins. It would be understandable if the athletes involved in such a heated rivalry were unable to say anything nice about their rivals they are about to go to battle with.

Well, CFL.ca tried anyways, and here are their answers ahead of the kickoff on Sunday at 7:00 p.m. ET. Canadian fans can watch on TSN. U.S. audiences can catch the game on CBS Sports Network and International fans can watch on CFL+.

OK TIRE LABOUR DAY WEEKEND

OK TIRE LABOUR DAY WEEKEND
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TREVOR HARRIS | QUARTERBACK | SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS

Trevor Harris is in his third year in Saskatchewan and knows very well the weight of their rivalry with Winnipeg. More than that, he saw the Blue Bombers win the West Division and reach the Grey Cup in his previous two seasons as the quarterback for the Green and White.

That’s why the only positive he could think of when it comes to the Bombers was his fellow signal-caller on the opposite sideline.

“I’m friends with their quarterback,” said Harris in a conversation with CFL.ca “Other than that, I don’t have anything nice to say.”

AJ OUELLETTE | RUNNING BACK | SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS

 

But if they can’t say anything nice about the team, it’s another conversation entirely when it comes to the fans. Players on both sides of the rivalry can recognize that these two fan bases make everything even more special when the ball gets kicked off on Sunday.

“The fans are passionate,” said AJ Ouellette about Blue Bombers fans. “I love when you go to a facility in a stadium where it’s going to be packed, it’s going to be loud, and the Winnipeg fans, they travel well and they’re loud. They’re passionate about their team. For the most part they’re very pleasant, and (in) my social media messages, they’re telling me they love the way I play the game, the style.”

BRADY OLIVEIRA | RUNNING BACK | WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS

 

If anyone is familiar with this rivalry is Winnipeg native Brady Oliveira. The tailback not only has plenty of experience playing the game, he also grew up a Blue Bombers fan cheering against the Riders.

That gives him a unique perspective when talking about this Labour Day Weekend matchup, the fans involved in it and the venue in which it’s played.

“They have a great stadium,” said the reigning MOP and MOC. “I do enjoy playing there. They have a very enthusiastic fan base. The fans really get into it. So it’s the environment that you want to play when you talk about playing on the road. (It’s a) place where it’s gonna be difficult to play, that added pressure on your shoulders, that’s real football right there.

“So, yeah, Mosaic Stadium I gotta give it to them. And that fan base is pretty good.”

STANLEY BRYANT | OFFENSIVE LINEMAN | WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS

 

Very few players have even more experience than Oliveira when it comes to playing against the Roughriders, but one of them is offensive lineman Stanley Bryant, who has been with the Bombers since 2015.

It almost seems like the longer you’ve been in a rivalry, the harder it is to say something nice about a rival. Bryant was still able to find a couple of nice things about the Saskatchewan Roughriders though.

“They have nice jerseys, the black and green ones,” said the lineman in a jokingly tone. “They’re pretty dope.”

On a more serious note, Bryant was also able to compliment Riders’ head coach Corey Mace, with whom the veteran was teammates with on the Calgary Stampeders.

“I love the head coach,” added the lineman. “Shout out Corey Mace, we played together. That’s it.”