TORONTO — It goes down as a win but feels like anything but for Nick Arbuckle.
Arbuckle threw a touchdown pass and ran in for a TD himself as the Toronto Argonauts held on for a wild 17-16 victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Friday night.
Hamilton got the ball at the Toronto 50-yard line with 2:23 left in the fourth quarter after a Cariel Brooks interception. The Ticats scored on Sean Thomas Erlington’s 20-yard run less than a minute later but Michael Domagala’s tying convert attempt hit the upright.
“Overall I feel like me and the offence just did not play well enough to win in the second half,” Arbuckle said. “It feels like a loss almost for me.
“That interception I threw at the end, that’s going to sit with me for the next 24 hours, for sure. I was trying to throw the ball away and I didn’t even get it to the sideline. Like, who does that? There were a lot of plays we left out there on offence.”
After the touchdown, Toronto took the ball to midfield with 25 seconds remaining and punted. The Ticats took over at their 18-yard line with 13 seconds left but only got as far the Argos’ 45-yard line as time expired.
“An ugly win is a good win regardless,” said Toronto running back John White IV, who rushed for a game-high 84 yards on 12 carries. “The football gods were looking out for us … we definitely were on the edge of our seats.”
Arbuckle staked Toronto to a 14-7 halftime advantage but the home team deserved better. The Argos held the ball for over 18 minutes and accumulated 217 offensive yards (compared to 154 yards for Hamilton).
Arbuckle had Toronto at the Hamilton 16-yard line in the second quarter but was intercepted in the end zone by the Ticats’ Tunde Adeleke.
“I’ll take any win at this point in the year,” Toronto head coach Ryan Dinwiddie said. “Bad win, good win, it is what it is but we’ll learn from it.
“We know we have to be better. The players were upset when I got (into locker-room) … I think those guys know we left a lot on the field and we were pretty sloppy. We’re not happy with our performance at all.”
Toronto (3-2) earned the narrow victory just four days after dropping a 32-19 decision to Hamilton (2-3) on Labour Day. The Argos improved to 2-0 at BMO Field this season while the Ticats suffered their first loss in three games.
The contest drew 9,702 spectators.
Hamilton finished with Dave Watford at quarterback as starter Dane Evans remained on the sidelines when the Ticats’ offence came on the field with under six minutes remaining. Evans, who threw for 248 yards and two TDs on Labour Day, finished 19-of-27 passing for 192 yards with a touchdown and interception.
“When I tried to stand up, man, it started to hurt,” said Evans, adding he wasn’t exactly sure about the nature of the injury. “I tried to throw on the sideline (but) it wasn’t happening.
“It (injury) is in a weird spot. If I can’t throw I’m not an asset to the team.”
Watford finished 6-of-10 passing for 78 yards. Arbuckle completed 23-of-37 attempts for 236 yards with a TD and two interceptions.
D.J. Foster scored Toronto’s other touchdown. Boris Bede added the converts and a field goal.
Papi White had Hamilton’s other touchdown. Domagala added a convert and field goal while also punting as incumbent Joel Whitford (groin) was injured before the game.
Domagala’s 28-yard field goal at 4:23 of the fourth pulled Hamilton to within 17-10. It came after Evans’s 19-yard run left the Ticats a yard short of a first down to effectively end a 60-yard, 11-play march.
The Ticats had a solid chance to cut into Toronto’s lead after Valentin Gnahoua’s deflection of Bede’s punt and ensuing no-yards penalty put them at the Toronto 51-yard line. But an incompletion and Shawn Oakman’s sack of Evans for a five-yard loss forced the punt.
Toronto opened the second half with a crisp 12-play, 79-yard march but settled for Bede’s 26-yard field goal at 6:56 of the third for a 17-7 lead.
Evans pulled Hamilton to within 14-7 with a 39-yard touchdown pass to white at 4:32 of the second after Foster’s 40-yard TD catch at 1:56.
Arbuckle opened the scoring with a one-yard TD run at 13:02 of the first to cap a 10-play, 54-yard march. It was aided by a successful challenge that turned an incompletion into a pass-interference call on Hamilton’s Kameron Kelly that put Toronto at the Ticats’ one-yard line.
And it marked the first time in three games that Hamilton had trailed on the scoreboard.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2021.
Vancouver Canucks winger Dakota Joshua is set to make his season debut Thursday after missing time for cancer treatment.
Head coach Rick Tocchet says Joshua will slot into the lineup Thursday when Vancouver (8-3-3) hosts the New York Islanders.
The 28-year-old from Dearborn, Mich., was diagnosed with testicular cancer this summer and underwent surgery in early September.
He spoke earlier this month about his recovery, saying it had been “very hard to go through” and that he was thankful for support from his friends, family, teammates and fans.
“That was a scary time but I am very thankful and just happy to be in this position still and be able to go out there and play,,” Joshua said following Thursday’s morning skate.
The cancer diagnosis followed a career season where Joshua contributed 18 goals and 14 assists across 63 regular-season games, then added four goals and four assists in the playoffs.
Now, he’s ready to focus on contributing again.
“I expect to be good, I don’t expect a grace period. I’ve been putting the work in so I expect to come out there and make an impact as soon as possible,” he said.
“I don’t know if it’s going to be perfect right from the get-go, but it’s about putting your best foot forward and working your way to a point of perfection.”
The six-foot-three, 206-pound Joshua signed a four-year, US$13-million contract extension at the end of June.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.
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.
