Montreal Alouettes quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., couldn’t explain what exactly happened in his team’s 27-10 home-opener loss to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Friday night.
“I don’t know what it is but I just got to shake it,” Adams Jr., said. “I got to shake it and I got to get back to being me and playing ball.”
One thing Adams Jr., was adamant about was taking responsibility for the Alouettes’ (1-2) loss. Despite Hamilton quarterback Dane Evans getting sacked six times, the Tiger-Cats (1-2) took the lead early on and kept it for the entire game.
Asked about the rest of his offence, including running back William Stanback’s mere 40 yards in rushing in the loss, Adams Jr., stood his line taking the blame for his teammates.
“This is a passing league, it doesn’t matter really,” Adams Jr., said. “I need to complete the ball, I need to move the chains, I need to make my correct reads and that’s it, man. If I played better, we were going to win. That’s it.”
Montreal head coach Khari Jones agreed that Adams Jr., had his role to play in Friday’s loss. However, Jones gave his quarterback a vote of confidence and thought that he can come back from the poor performance.
“There were passes that we should be hitting on, that we should be completing, but we’re not right now but I still have faith in him. I still believe that he can do his job,” Jones said.
After failing to record more than eight points in a game this season, the Tiger-Cats broke their 2021 scoring record in the first half alone.
Evans threw a 30-yard pass for Steven Dunbar Jr., to give the Tiger-Cats the early lead. Hamilton kicker Michael Domagala quickly followed by converting a short field goal for a 10-0 advantage.
Percival Molson Stadium roared for the first time when wide receiver Quan Bray notched the Alouettes’ first touchdown in the second quarter.
Adams Jr., located Bray to his left and the 10-yard pass resulted in Montreal’s first touchdown at home.
Montreal’s defence kept Hamilton from advancing in the second quarter but Domagala added a second field goal to his tally. His attempt from 46 yards out went straight through the uprights giving Hamilton a 13-7 lead.
Adams Jr., got into his groove late in the first half throwing twice to BJ Cunningham for 11- and 26-yard gains respectively. However, the quarterback struggled to find his receivers as he got to the red zone, settling for a field goal from kicker David Cote bringing the score 13-10 at the half.
After a scoreless third quarter, Hamilton’s defence took care of business as Frankie Williams notched the first interception of the game, placing the Ticats in a great position to score.
Evans found his second touchdown pass of the night with a three-yard attempt to fullback Nikola Kalinic lifting the Ticats to a 20-10 lead and silencing the Montreal crowd.
Jones believed that coming out flat in the third quarter slowed down his team’s efforts to come from behind and win. Instead, the Alouettes now find themselves with a losing streak and a 1-6 record against the Tiger-Cats in their last seven games.
“It’s become the problem. Coming out of the half it bothered me a little bit because it’s a three-point game, you want to move the ball,” Jones said. “Right now, we’re not just good enough to come back from some of those things on offense.”
Following a late Alouettes turnover on downs, running back Sean-Thomas Erlington ran in Hamilton’s final touchdown. The Montreal native’s five-yard run sealed the Ticats win.
With a lot on the mind heading into next week’s away matchup against the Ottawa Redblacks, Adams Jr., once again admitted not knowing what will need to happen in order to shake up his 1-2 start.
“I don’t know why I’m feeling this way but I do need to play with more confidence and be more loose like I normally do. It’s just tough right now,” Adams said.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published August 27, 2021.
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
