Another cup game comes and goes
If you can’t be remembered for what you’ve done (or represented), then be famous for the trophy named in your memory. It certain works for that top of the heap position, the governor-generalship of Canada. I didn’t “know” but I’d long suspected that those sports championships were named for somebody or other. Wikipedia confirmed it, with the section on Sports Trophies Named After Canadian Governors-general which opened my eyes to how some things are more obscure than others. How about that Michener trophy, eh?
Today is Grey Cup day, and may the team with the best quarterback carry the field. One has a broken foot and the other has never really played before. Seems like a fair matchup. I’m a “fair weather fan”, taking the time to tune in on a limited number of occasions each year; the championship game usually makes the cut. Perhaps if the Atlantic Schooners franchise had gone beyond the logo level in planning, I might have had more loyalty. Today, I’m hoping for Winnipeg Blue Bombers, because I know a guy that used to play for them (Pahl, for you trivia buffs). On a day like today, it makes more sense than to hope that both teams win (or lose).
Somehow holding the game in a closed stadium in Toronto negates the whole purpose of the thing. After all, how can we prove to the rest of the world how Canadians are really tough about weather when it has been locked outside? The fans were in short sleeves, for pity’s sake! Where are the snow drifts and the glacial winds when they are most welcome?
This matchup could have come from Phoenix. To add insult, the halftime show starred Lenny Kravitz from NYC. Yes, they have winter down there, but it doesn’t get as berserk as a game played outside in Edmonton. Next year in Montreal promises another indoor adventure. No snow, no tough guys.
If the CFL wants to impress, it should follow several simple rules. Give a franchise to the Maritimes (and maybe Quebec City, so I could see a game or two). Play outside all the time. Only allow the Guess Who as halftime entertainment. Now that would be Canadian Football.
