THE CANADIAN PRESS
TORONTO — Cory Boyd ran for two touchdowns as the Toronto Argonauts held on for a thrilling 24-18 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Thursday night to halt a six-game losing streak.
Toronto (2-6) earned its first home win over Saskatchewan (1-7) since 2005, a span of six contests, before a Rogers Centre gathering of 20,482 with an open roof on a beautiful summer evening. The victory was also the Argos’ first here since a 17-13 decision over Winnipeg on Sept. 19, 2010, again a six-game stretch.
But it didn’t come easily as Saskatchewan’s Darian Durant erased a 24-4 deficit by hitting Chris Getlaf and former Argo James Robinson on TD strikes of 70 and 21 yards, respectively. He smartly drove the Riders to the Toronto 19-yard line before twice failing to connect on the game-winning throw into the end zone, turning the ball over on downs with less than 20 seconds remaining.
Evan McCollough (above) made one of the Argos’ biggest knockdowns with this play on Chris Getzlaf in the dying moments to preserve the win.
The exciting ending notwithstanding, Greg Marshall’s first season as a CFL head coach continues to be a trying one as the Riders – who’ve won the West Division title and appeared in the Grey Cup the last two years – have dropped four straight.
Saskatchewan’s woes in southern Ontario this season continued after being humbled 33-3 in Hamilton on July 16.
Most alarming was how the Roughriders lost, with numerous untimely penalties. A big one came to start the second half when, with Saskatchewan trailing 11-0, Durant’s 37-yard completion to Getzlaf inside Toronto’s 10-yard line was negated by a holding penalty.
The Roughriders still drove to the Toronto 20-yard line, but the 50-yard, 12-play drive ended with rookie Christopher Milo missing a 27-yard field goal at 6:35 of the third to cut the Argos’ lead to 14-1.
Noel Prefontaine had three field goals, two converts and a single.
Milo hit one of his three field goal tries and added two converts and a single.
Prefontaine’s 47-yard field goal on the final play of the second quarter earned Toronto its 14-0 half-time lead. And again, the Riders certainly helped the Argos out with undisciplined play.
Tristan Jackson’s interception with 16 seconds left in the half was negated by Lance Frazier’s pass interference penalty. That allowed Toronto to keep the ball and have Prefontaine kick his field goal.
Boyd had the half’s lone TD on a one-yard run at 5:34 of the first, which was set up by a pass interference penalty that put Toronto at the Saskatchewan one-yard line. The Argos got the ball when Jordan Younger recovered Durant’s fumble at the Riders’ 31-yard line on their first offensive play of the game.
Later, Jackson’s 19-yard punt return was nullified by illegal block and objectionable conduct penalties before Stu Foord’s 13-yard run came back because of a crackback block.
Jackson’s tough luck continued in the second when a holding penalty negated his sparkling 42-yard punt return. Still, Saskatchewan drove to the Toronto 34-yard line before failing to convert on third-and-one.
NOTES: Kicker Eddie Johnson and linebacker Sean Lucas were among Saskatchewan’s scratches while neither tailback Chad Kackert nor defensive tackle Kevin Huntley dressed for Toronto . . . Argos cornerback Byron Parker needs one more interception return TD to tie the CFL record of eight that’s shared between former CFL greats Dick Thornton and Malcolm Frank as well as Edmonton’s Jason Goss . . . Thursday’s game was broadcast live south of the border on The NFL Network.