HAMILTON (CP) — Finally, Charlie Taaffe doesn’t have to answer any more
questions about the Hamilton Tiger-Cats’ inability to throw touchdown
passes.
Richie Williams threw three TD strikes — Hamilton’s first of the
season — to lead the injury-plagued Tiger-Cats to a stunning 45-21 win
over the Toronto Argonauts on Thursday night.
“I can say this now, but I thought it was hilarious that we hadn’t
thrown a touchdown pass in a passing league,” Taaffe said. “I finally
don’t have to answer that question anymore.
“We played like we were fighting for something. That’s the way we have to play.”
But one question Taaffe will have to answer soon is whether Williams or
injured incumbent Casey Printers will start next week in Winnipeg.
Hamilton has scored 78 points in its last two games with Williams
starting in place of Printers (thumb).
“I’m not going to go there tonight,” Taaffe said. “I’m going to enjoy this tonight, then watch the film (Friday).
“We’ll do what’s right for our football team.”
Williams registered Hamilton’s first TD strike with a four-yard
completion to Robert Pavlovic in the second quarter. He then found
Terry Caulley on a three-yard completion to cap Hamilton’s first
possession of the third for a 25-18 advantage.
Williams finished 15-of-24 passing for 293 yards and the three TDs. He also rushed for 59 yards on eight carries.
“I don’t want to start a quarterback controversy,” Taaffe said. “Richie played well, the team responds to him.
“It isn’t always pretty … but he has a knack of making plays.”
Williams was non-commital when asked if he should start against Winnipeg.
“I’m just biding my time until he (Printers) comes back,” said
Williams, who would only shake his head when quizzed about a potential
quarterback controversy in Steeltown.
There could well be questions about the running attack, too. Caulley
ran for 127 yards on 14 carries in place of Ticats rushing leader Jesse
Lumsden (ankle).
The game marked the first time Hamilton had scored 45 points in a game since a 65-15 thrashing of Winnipeg on Sept. 18, 1999.
Hamilton (2-5) snapped a four-game losing streak with its second win in
as many meetings this season against Toronto (3-4), which remains tied
atop the East with idle Montreal (3-3). The Ticats beat the Argos 32-13
at Rogers Centre in July when they ran over 300 yards and have clinched
the three-game season series. The final contest will be the annual
Labour Day clash here.
“They have our number this year,” Argos head coach Rich Stubler said.
“We’ve beaten them a number of times in the past but not now.
“We’ll have it figured out by Labour Day.”
Toronto was expected to have little difficulty handling the ailing
Ticats but the home team broke the game open by outscoring the Argos
17-0 in the third to snap an 18-18 half-time tie. Hamilton also had
success running the ball, rushing for 209 yards in rolling up a
whopping 508 total yards.
“It got away from us in the third quarter,” Stubler said. “They took it away from us.”
Another factor for Hamilton was winning the turnover battle as the
Ticats didn’t turn the ball over at all while forcing four Argos
turnovers.
“Most teams lose games than win them,” Taaffe said. “It (turnovers) is always big in every game we play.”
Hamilton also got the benefit of a big review on an apparent acrobatic
catch by Toronto’s Arland Bruce III at the sidelines. However,
officials gave Ticats’ defensive back Chris Thompson credit for the
interception to erase the play. Later in the quarter, Thompson laid out
Argos receiver Nathan Hoffart with a bone-crunching hit, delighting the
sparse but vocal Ivor Wynne Stadium gathering of 19,423.
And Williams had them on their feet at 6:54 of the fourth, hitting
Chris Bauman on a 63-yard TD strike to emphatically cement the win.
“It’s a tough one to swallow, especially coming against an Eastern
opponent,” said Argos quarterback Kerry Joseph, who was 21-of-40
passing for 303 yards and two interceptions. “It was frustrating in the
second half.
“They did a lot of different things on second down and made some good adjustments.”
.The second half has been a problem of late for Toronto, which has
mustered just eight points after halftime in its last three games.
Caulley’s TD capped a smart five-play, 76-yard drive, and Hamilton put
another solid march together on their its next possession. But the home
team had to settle for a point on Setta’s errant 24-yard field goal.
However, all was forgiven seconds later when Markeith Knowlton returned
a Kerry Joseph interception 44 yards for the TD at 8:41 for a 33-18
lead. And the Hamilton faithful were on their feet on the ensuing
kickoff when Sean Manning recovered Jamal Robertson’s fumble at centre
field.
Robertson and Dominique Dorsey scored Toronto’s touchdowns. Mike
Vanderjagt added a convert and two field goals. Arland Bruce III had a
two-point convert.
Caulley had two touchdowns for Hamilton. Nick Setta kicked five
converts, two singles and a field goal. The other points came on a
safety.
NOTES — Reggie McNeal, Toronto’s No. 4 quarterback, started at
receiver due to an abundance of injuries at the position. He finished
as the team’s leading receiver with six catches for 101 yards … There
was a moment of silence prior to the game to honour the memory of Leif
Pettersen, a former Ticat and football broadcaster who died last week
at the age of 57 … Linebacker Kevin Eiben returned to Toronto’s
defence after missing two games with a knee injury.