Perry Lefko

Perry Lefko keeps you connected to all the news in the CFL on Sportsnet.ca.

Ticats owner Bob Young.

It's the day after the Braley Bowl, which featured the host Toronto Argonauts and visiting B.C. Lions, whom I collectively refer to as the Braley Bunch because both are owned by Senator David Braley.

I travelled to the historic Braley tilt on the Go Train from Mississauga, accompanied by Peter Whitaker, who owns a pool and spa business and is also creating a separate media empire. He has launched www.TheHazeFM.ca , an internet radio station in Mississauga that will soon have Argo content as part of its programming.

The Haze refers to Hazel McCallion, the venerable mayor of Mississauga, the sixth largest city in Canada. Mississauga may possibly become home to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats because Her Worship has told the team's owner, Ballcap Bob Young, that if the city of Steeltown doesn't placate him for a satisfactory site for a future stadium, she'll accommodate him with new digs.

Of course, Burlington and Oakville have also told Caretaker Bob that they'd also be interested in building a new stadium for his BobCats.

If the Cats, currently struggling with a 1-3 record, don't start to show improvement, this whole stadium standoff with the City of Hamilton may become moot. Who wants to see a losing team play?

Sadly losing has become commonplace for most of the Bob Young era, now in its seventh season. Try as he might with a steady stream of presidents, general managers, head coaches and high-priced free agents, Young just can't get it right.

The whole stadium conflict is becoming a sad and silly soap opera. The Mayor and his cronies want it downtown, while Young's football team, as the potential primary tenant, wants it closer to an area near one of the highways for expanded parking and greater visibility for a company wishing to pay for naming rights.

I refer to the whole thing as the Young and the Restless, but every time I write about it readers comment that I'm fixated on the East and should write about the stadium doings in Western Canada.

I'm sure the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers will have new homes in a few years. There seems to be more of a community spirit in those regions and provinces for the greater good of their CFL football teams. It's hard to come to that conclusion in Hamilton. This is a team lost in a downward economy and an owner willing to spend millions each year because of a belief he can someday win the Grey Cup.

Braley once owned the Ticats, then sold them because he didn't like the direction the league was headed with expansion to the U.S. He rejoined the CFL loop by buying the cash-strapped Lions in 1996. He bought the Argos earlier this year.

Braley was in fine spirits heading into Rogers Centre for the Braley Bowl. He did various interviews to hype up the game. It didn't translate to traffic at the turnstiles. Less than 20,000 were on hand to watch the game. Clearly he has work to do to make this team attractive to ticket buyers. His Argos are 3-1, having beaten the Lions 24-20, in the Braley Bowl, Part One. The Lions are 1-3. The Argos are winning with good defence and a run game. Their quarterback, Cleo Lemon, a National Football League refugee, is moving at a snail's pace in his CFL evolution. But at least the team is winning.

I have heard that at some point Braley will exercise his might and influence to resolve the Hamilton stadium impasse. He has major clout in Steeltown.

Maybe Braley should buy into the Ticats. He knows this league better than anyone. What would it matter if he owned another CFL franchise?

You can never have enough Braley Bowls!