Thursday, August 16, 2012

CFL Game Day: Hamilton at Winnipeg (August 16)

Are the Bombers on the cusp of meltdown? If the tea leaves of the gypsies of the Winnipeg media are any indication Paul LaPolice could very well find his employment in peril after tonight's Hamilton game and if so, the consensus seems to be that he can take GM Joe Mack with him.

Such is the tone of the debate in Bomber land these days with the 1-5 Bombers turning to third string and untested Joey Elliot to lead the Bomber offence into what many suggest is a must win situation.

The Bombers have struggled visibly through the season and while perhaps a few breaks one way or another might have offered up a bit of comfort and a better record, for the most part they have been outperformed on a nightly basis heading into week 8.

About the only discussion that has any balance in Winnipeg these days is whether all the blame is to rest with head coach Paul LaPolice or if perhaps the GM hasn't really done much to help his coach by providing players that could turn things around.

The Bombers are pointing towards the injury of Buck Pierce as a key moment for what appears to be the disaster in making, however, considering the lengthy injury listings that one can review whenever the name of Buck Pierce is brought up, surely that couldn't have been a surprise.

The media sharks can smell a bit of blood in the water and the evolving theme seems to be that this Hamilton game could be the last stand for the coach.

A bad thing for LaPolice considering the snarling mood the Cats will be in when they take to the field at CanadInn Stadium, Hamilton was overwhelmed by the Stamps last week, unable to stop the Jon Cornish show and incapable of matching the Stamps on the scoreboard.

It no doubt was a disappointment for the home fans, who had been watching the steady rise of the Cats over the last few weeks, Henry Burris looking to be at mid career form, last week provided a step back for all in yellow and black.

A game that provided a Tiger Cat team that more resembled the team that struggled out of the gate this year and not the one that looked as though they could runaway with the East a few weeks ago.

Hamilton will be looking to recapture the team with the latter characteristics on Thursday, bad news for the Bombers, bad news for coach LaPolice...

Game Time 8 PM CT, 9 ET, 6 PT Canad Inn Stadium TSN

Hamilton 25 at Winnipeg 32 (27,039)

Pre Game

CFL Video Preview

Globe and Mail-- Bombers seek second win of the season vs. Tiger-Cats
Winnipeg Free Press-- Makings of a meltdown for Bombers
Winnipeg Sun-- Bombers aim to put changes into action
Hamilton Spectator-- It's that time of year again for Tiger-Cats

Team Backgrounders

Hamilton Tiger Cats
Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Post Game

CFL.ca-- Game Recap
CFL.ca-- Video Review

Globe and Mail-- Joey Elliot leads Bombers past Tiger Cats for second win of the season
National Post-- Quarterback Joey Elliot leads Bombers over the Tiger-Cats
Winnipeg Free Press-- Bombers defeat Ticats 32-25 for critical victory
Winnipeg Sun-- Bombers back in race with win over Tiger-Cats
Hamilton Spectator-- Turnovers torment TiCats
Toronto Sun-- Winnipeg's defence gets its swagger back

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