Due to an unfavorable schedule, the Montreal Alouettes could be the big losers in the Canadian Football League (CFL) in the event of a COVID-19 outbreak.
Indeed, the troop led by Khari Jones started the season with a week away from the field of play and will be on leave during the sixth week of activities.
The room for maneuver will thus be very slim in the event of an outbreak, whether in the Montreal team or among its opponents, given the many elements to be considered by the circuit when considering a postponement. An outright cancellation, with a defeat by forfeit, could thus have an impact on a presence, or not, in the playoffs.
However, there is no question of dwelling on hypothetical scenarios with the Alouettes, and especially not having no control over the situation.
“It’s unfortunate that part of the CFL is postponed, but everyone’s health remains a priority. Our players and staff know the rules, and we are convinced that everyone is doing their part to prevent the spread of the virus, ”General Manager Danny Maciocia commented in an email to QMI Agency.
“It’s concerning, but our players realize the seriousness of the situation and are following league protocol,” added Jones. Unfortunately, with COVID-19, you can do all the right things and catch the virus anyway. We will continue to follow the rules, hoping for a positive outcome. ”
The cancellations will also deprive players of their salary, unless 85% of them have received at least a first dose of a vaccine. On this side, the Alouettes do not have to worry, since 86% of their color carriers have been inoculated at least once.
Costly indiscipline
But it was the acts of indiscipline in Friday’s loss to the Stampeders in Calgary that caught the attention of coaches ahead of Monday’s practice session.
These were numerous in this reverse of 28 to 22 of the Sparrows. They were indeed fined 16 penalties for losses of 149 yards. Eight of them, for 71 yards, occurred within the defensive brigade.
If the gesture of Tony Washington, who pushed the attack back 15 yards after jumping in the legs of Jarrell Owens in the second quarter caught the attention, it was rather Tyquwan Glass who hurt the club the most.
The defensive back suffered two penalties – one for offside and the other for harshness – while his team desperately tried to block access to his end zone for the Stampeders. So a third down and four yards quickly turned into first and one yard to go.
“You have to be disciplined,” Glass confessed on video conference Monday. I let my emotions take over. But it’s part of this sport. I had some discussions with teammates and coaches. So I’m going to make sure that doesn’t happen again. ”
Glass, who was also penalized 15 yards in the first half after grabbing an opponent’s facial protector, believes a few plays were enough to distract the defensive unit.
Message heard
Taking some of the blame, however, he believes the situation can easily be corrected and that the coaches’ message was quickly understood, either after the game or before hitting the pitch for practice on Monday.
“I felt that we reacted well [au discours des instructeurs]. We went to practice this morning and everything went well. You just have to bounce back, take it one day at a time and be ready for Friday. […] We have to be smarter in what we do and take our responsibilities individually so that everything goes according to plan. ”
“It was tough,” said Adarius Pickett of the game. There were a number of penalties and that sort of thing. We have to be more disciplined. We had a very good training [lundi], so I feel like we’re putting ourselves in a situation where we can play a more disciplined game on Friday. ”
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