TORONTO – Destination Hamilton and Gray Cup final for the Alouettes! Driven by its defensive unit, which managed a total of eight turnovers, the Montreal club defeated the strong Argonauts 38:17 in the Eastern final on Saturday in Toronto.
The Alouettes’ defense, skillfully led by coordinator Noel Thorpe, caused four turnovers in the first half. Quebec’s Marc-Antoine Dequoy won first, while the Argonauts threatened from their first offensive sequence. So the Marauder intercepted the ball at the nine-yard line and used the oval object to move 101 yards to the touchdown.
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If Dequoy’s middle finger set the tone for the game, it was another touchdown interception scored by Kabion Ento in the third quarter that would deal a tough blow to the Argos. The Alouettes then went 24-3 against the reigning Gray Cup champions and held a record of 16-2 last regular season.
The greed of the Argonauts?
On two occasions during the first half, the Alouettes spectacularly stopped the opponent’s attack with one meter left. With Toronto drowning in greed at goal, it might have been wise to go for a short three-point field goal in one of these situations.
Peter Power/LCF.ca.
Also in the first half, lineman Shawn Lemon forced a fumble against quarterback Chad Kelly, while Darnell Sankey recovered the ball in the sequence. After another turnover early in the third quarter, an interception by Reggie Stubblefield, the Alouettes finally scored a touchdown. Tyler Snead caught a pass from Cody Fajardo and scored the major.
Costly punishment
Moments earlier, the Argonauts had received a costly roughness penalty on David Côté’s field goal attempt after making contact with the Alouettes’ long-range throw specialist. This would result in Montreal regaining the ball in a position advantageous to Montreal. The sixth of the Alouettes’ seven turnovers was an interception by Sankey, also in the third quarter.
- The Alouettes will compete in the Gray Cup final for the first time since 2010. This year, the team from Montreal won their second title in a row after defeating the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the final in 2009. That was during the era of quarterback Anthony Calvillo, now the team’s offensive coordinator.
- With his 101-yard game, Marc-Antoine Dequoy approached Kenny Wheaton’s record in Canadian Football League playoff history for the longest interception return by a major. This brand was founded in 2004 by the former Argonauts.