The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are doing felines throughout the world a gross disservice. They are anything but ferocious, entirely incapable of attacking their targets.
If felines covet a boost from the CFL, there are the B.C. Lions, who are roaring. The Lions rule. The Pussy-Cats drool.
So imagine what could happen when these two meet in B.C. Thursday night.
I didn’t anticipate this. When the season opened, I figured quarterback Jason Maas would regain his form and would lead the Cats to relatively lofty heights. I fell for Hamilton hype — that running back Jesse Lumsden was the real deal, that all-purpose back Corey Holmes would play with purpose and that new coach Charlie Taaffe would change the culture.
After three games, however, the Cats are 0-3 and turning off their fans quicker than you can shut down your computer. Hamilton’s crowd Saturday night was the tiniest at Never Win Stadium in Bob Young’s four years of ownership. The customers watched in dismay as the Montreal Alouettes, 0-2 entering the night, won 29-20.
The Cats actually may be worse than they were last year, when they were 4-14. They were winless in their first three games last season, too, yet they had scored 20 more points and had allowed 15 fewer.
Young’s hiring of Marcel Desjardins as general manager is drawing criticism.
“The way the Tiger-Cats have been playing is revealing the truth about Desjardins and his work,” CBC analyst Sean Millington said. “His work isn’t very good.”
•Lions head coach and GM Wally Buono wants Saskatchewan players suspended because of blocks they made and because of a hit B.C. quarterback Dave Dickenson took from the Riders’ Fred Perry.
Buono said he saw illegal chop blocks. And he said he felt Perry’s hit was questionable because the player left his feet and used his helmet to strike Dickenson, who suffered a concussion and may not be able to play Thursday.
•Tom Higgins will be fired as the Stampeders’ coach if his team loses badly to the Argonauts in Calgary Saturday night.
So say two sources who’ve been led to believe that the club’s managing partner, Ted Hellard, is losing patience with Higgins because of the Stamps’ most recent performances — a 48-9 loss in Saskatchewan and a 48-15 loss in Toronto.
