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REGINA—A wonderful story trumped by a more powerful one.
No one would quibble, of course, with the notion that the Hamilton Tiger-Cats wove a terrific tale this season, a team without a permanent stadium or practice field, a team that overcame a 1-4 start, a team that finally delivered on owner Bob Young's promise to his dying brother to save the franchise and put a Grey Cup-quality product on the field.
But my goodness, there was also this extraordinary prairie story, a story of a devoted fan base in Saskatchewan that has waited and waited and now can thoroughly enjoy what is truly a golden era in three-down Canadian football.
When those two narratives collided on Sunday in Grey Cup 101, one from the east and one from the west in the true tradition of this championship contest, the one from western Canada proved to be the irresistible, unstoppable force that would not be denied.
It also meant that the biggest game of the CFL season disintegrated into a rather unfortunate blowout, with the Riders crushing the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in a record-setting 45-23 triumph.
"Now that we've won, I'm sure we'll have a lot of sex," chuckled victorious Saskatchewan head coach Corey Chamblin, forced to explain earlier in the week his decision to establish a team curfew that curtailed various extracurricular activities.
On a day when Toronto bubbled with news of a Jon Bon Jovi/Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment collaboration to bring the NFL to the city, it was abundantly clear before the sun had fully dipped below the horizon that even the designated representatives from southern Ontario sent westward for Sunday's title match weren't up to the task of supporting the best interests of the CFL by creating a tight title game.
It was 17-3 early, 31-6 at halftime and the rest was pretty much accounting. The Tiger-Cats couldn't notch a converted touchdown for the opening 42 minutes of play, and 38-year-old quarterback Henry Burris, hated in these parts as a Rider who left town, was inconsistent and missed receivers at important times.
"For me, how many more of these do I have?" said Burris. "It's very disappointing to finish off the season like this."
The Riders' 31 first-half points were a Grey Cup record, and by early in the fourth quarter Saskatchewan running back Kory Sheets had smashed a 57-year-old record held by the great Johnny Bright and cemented MVP honours.
"It feels good to get that rushing record, sure," said Sheets, who romped for 197 yards. "But if feels better to win that Grey Cup. I haven't won a championship since high school."
This victory, the Riders' second in seven years on four tries, is as much about a province's passion for the sport as it is for the team itself.
The Riders and their fans have suffered through 15 Grey Cup defeats over the past century, going back to 1923 when the Regina Rugby Club journeyed east to contest the Grey Cup and lost 54-0 to Queen's University.
Rider Nation surely loved the CFL game, but so often, even when men like Ronnie Lancaster and George Reed were stars, that love seemed unrequited.
These days, the Riders have taken over from the Montreal Alouettes as the leading franchise in the league, both in terms of their on-field success and profitability, something those who organized this community-owned team once couldn't have imagined.
"It's great for their team, for the province and for the league," said Hamilton coach Kent Austin, who quarterbacked and coached the Riders to previous Grey Cup wins.
"Saskatchewan is certainly a shining light in that regard."
When Regina first hosted the Grey Cup in 1995, the profits allowed the team to barely stay afloat, and not without a Save-the-Riders telethon. In 2003, the monies generated by hosting again allowed the franchise to record a $27,000 profit, its first in two decades.
Now? It's a Green Machine out here, making millions and building a new $278 million stadium due to open in 2017.
Folks in these parts are just wild about their CFL team, and on Sunday, the crowd of 44,710 was a noisy, intimidating green-clad mob against the backdrop of an unforgiving winter moving in.
"I looked around during warmups and thought, 'I wouldn't want to be in their shoes," said Chamblin.
The importance of the new gridiron power out west, of course, may become even more pivotal depending on what happens to Toronto's troubled team, a franchise that will soon have no home and no owner.
CFL commissioner Mark Cohon is clearly hoping MLSE will get interested and turn into a sugar daddy for the Argonauts, and so far, the conglomerate that owns the Leafs, Raptors and Toronto FC hasn't said no.
But the news that MLSE may be the money backing Bon Jovi's dream of buying the Buffalo Bills, and possibly moving that team to Toronto, at the very least indicates the ownership trio of Larry Tanenbaum, Bell and Rogers has its eye on bigger fish.
It's a story, clearly, to be watched.
On Sunday, the Cats might have recognized the storyline was irrevocably slanted in favour of the Riders on the second offensive series when Simoni Lawrence belted quarterback Darian Durant, popping the football loose and high into the air.
Sheets then didn't just alertly pick it out of the air, he took it downfield for a 42-yard gain.
"I've been on the other side of the green thing when that stuff happens," said Chamblin, who previously coached in Calgary and Hamilton. "This time, the stars aligned."
Twice in the first half, the Cats couldn't even negotiate a solid snap from Marwan Hage to Burris in the shotgun formation, creating a sense the Hamiltonians were simply overwhelmed by the situation.
"It's a long journey," said Hage, choosing his words carefully. "It's a lot of work, a lot of stress on the family. It's hard.
"But the road is justified when you win. When you don't. . . ."
Well, you do what they've done for decades in Regina. You keep hoping, keep supporting, keep trying.
And maybe something special not only happens.
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