It took all of 60 minutes, but in the end the team with the best players on the field won.
The Saskatchewan Roughriders made the smart decision to sit out several starters, including quarterback Trevor Harris, running back AJ Ouellette and defensive lineman Micah Johnson, among many others.
This decision turned out to be even better, given that it was a rainy night at the Princess Auto Stadium.
With all of that in mind, pretty much everyone expected the Blue Bombers to win this game and win it fairly easily, although some of us expected the Riders to cover the 5.5 point spread offered by the bookmakers.
Honestly, if head coach Corey Mays hadn't turned to third-string quarterback Jack Coan in the fourth quarter, the Riders might have been able to hold on for the win. However, giving the ball to Coan was still the right decision because you don't have many realistic situations to test your third-string quarterback in a game where the outcome doesn't matter.
I'll leave what this victory says current status of bombers to my colleague John Hodge. From the Riders' perspective, even if they lose, they know they can still be competitive even if a number of injuries plague this team in the Western finals.
Here are the good, the bad and the stupid of Saskatchewan's fifth loss of the season.
good
At the beginning of this game we saw something that is rarely seen from the Green and Whites: aggressiveness on the first possession of the ball.
After Trey Vaval recovered the fumble on the opening kickoff, the Riders took possession at the Winnipeg 43-yard line. Too many times this season have we seen offensive coordinator Mark Mueller, after a big play-changing pass, make a run of a yard or two, followed by either an incomplete pass or a short pass that ends short of a first down, resulting in the Riders punting the ball back.
Not this time.
On their very first play from scrimmage, with backup quarterback Jake Mayer, Mueller hit wide receiver Joe Robustelli. The pass was incomplete, but the Bombers were called for interference, allowing Coan to sneak in one yard for a 6-0 lead.
Points were a bonus in this game, but as TSN's Luke Wilson noted on the broadcast, whoever the Riders face in the Western Final will now have to think about it for a second before selling out to stop the run first in that situation.
I'm also a big fan of field goals after a turnover, as it can easily change your team's game. The performance also made it clear that the Riders came to Winnipeg to play, not just perform.
Bad
From the Riders' point of view, the outcome of this game didn't matter, but habits did.
If there was one red flag for Saskatchewan in this case, it was the number of late penalties they took.
The Riders were flagged a total of eight times over 65 yards, and while that distance is a bit short for the number of flags, what's even more concerning is when these penalties were applied.
On the Bombers' first offensive possession, C.J. Reavis was flagged for pass interference on second down, forcing the defense off the field. The long drive resulted in the Blue Bombers' only touchdown of the game. Another pass interference call in the third quarter also occurred on second down, but it was less damaging.
Half of the eight flags taken came on either the Blue Bombers on second or third down, including a pyramid call on Sergio Castillo's successful field goal that allowed the Bombers to continue driving and run out the clock instead of giving the offense 30-40 seconds after the kickoff.
On offense, a holding with just over two minutes left in the first half negated Mario Anderson Jr.'s solid nine-yard gain on first down and ultimately led to a two-and-out.
Penalties will happen throughout the entire football match. The goal is to try to limit their damage, and the Riders could have done a better job of that on Friday night.
Blunt
There's no doubt that CFL players are incredibly athletic, but sometimes we need a little reminder that despite their superhuman abilities, they are, in fact, human too.
In the fourth quarter, powerhouse linebacker Antoine Brooks Jr. attempted a somersault after Zach Collaros' pass fell incomplete. The former Maryland Terp didn't land very well, but managed to keep his balance and not make a complete fool of himself.
In the same quarter, quarterback Jack Coan added a nine-yard gain on a first down play. When Coan started to run out of space, he decided it was time to take the field. I don't know for sure, but I'm guessing Coan didn't play much baseball as a child, and if he did, he may have been a pitcher because sliding head first was quite awkward.
I'm sure that when the team reviews the film, both of these moments will bring laughter to the room. All this is, of course, fun.
