BY PERRY LEFKO
sportsnet.ca
They were visible in their green apparel and their voice, the Rider Nation comprising much of the announced crowd of 20,482.
It may have been a home game for the Toronto Argonauts Thursday night at the Rogers Centre against the visiting Saskatchewan Roughriders, but it sure seemed more like a clash at Mosaic Stadium in Regina.
The Rider Priders cheered loudly and often, "Let’s go Riders. Let’s go Riders."
But it was not to be as the Riders lost 24-18, falling to 1-7 and as of now officially the worst team in the Canadian Football League.
- Cory Boyd ran for two touchdowns
- Toronto earned its first home win over Saskatchewan since 2005
- Noel Prefontaine had three field goals, two converts and a single
Depending on what happens Friday in Edmonton, where the B.C. Lions (1-6) play the Eskimos (5-2), the Riders may have company in the basement.
Whatever swagger the Saskatchewan Roughriders had in recent years has moved east to Winnipeg.
The Argos finally snapped their losing streak at six games and now head into their bye week feeling a littler better about themselves as they are very much a work in progress and have a ways to go.
Argos quarterback Cleo Lemon didn’t throw for 300-plus yards for the third consecutive game, but the Riders made it easy for him in the first half by taking needless pass interference penalties, one of which negated an interception.
He finished with only 169 yards on 20 completions in 28 attempts, but a win is a win and 2-6 is a lot better than 1-7. That’s all that matters to them and their diehard fans, not nearly as strong in numbers as Rider Priders, though passionate nonetheless.
As for the indifference of Torontonians in general to the Argos, well, that’s a constant issue. They don’t have jacked-up fans like the Riders. The Argos organization can’t slap a team logo on some merchandize and sell it quickly.
Last year, the Riders set a record with more than $10.3 million in merchandise sales – an increase of 45 per cent from the previous year – which contributed to an overall record profit of $6.6 million.
Of course, that happened in a year in which the Riders made it to the Grey Cup for the second consecutive year and the third time in four years.
But that was then and these are not the same Riders.
One can anticipate a group huddle by team president Jim Hopson, vice-president of football operations Ken Miller, general manager Brendan Taman, head coach Greg Marshall before the team’s next game, September 4 at home against Winnipeg.
Yes, the entire province will hold its collective breath hoping for the return of prodigal native son Andy Fantuz, who is trying out with the Chicago Bears. But the gifted receiver appears to be a longshot to survive the cuts.
That said, Fantuz alone won’t be the answer. This is a Rider team that has some serious issues.
Quarterback Darian Durant had an ebb-and-flow kind of game, struggling for most of the game until he found himself and engineered two touchdowns midway into the final 15 minutes and came close to a third in the dying seconds.
He started off the game with a pass that fell short in its trajectory, and the play was deemed a fumble that the Argos recovered and turned into a touchdown.
He took a hellacious shot from Argo linebacker Jordan Younger on the last play of the third quarter and was slow to regain his feet, but showed his grit in returning, even if he did throw an interception on the first play.
He finished with 31 completions in 45 attempts for 385 yards and had one interception and one fumble.
The loss cannot be blamed solely on Durant as the Riders took far too many penalties in all phases of the game and ruined their own momentum.
And yet their beloved fans hung in there until the end, hoping and praying for a win that was not to be.
It’s been that kind of year for the Riders.
