Tiger-Cats Fight Back to Defeat Argonauts in CFL Eastern Final
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Tiger-Cats Fight Back to Defeat Argonauts in CFL Eastern Final

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We finally made it! After a delayed and shortened CFL season, we’re just a couple games away from the Grey Cup.

The first matchup of the afternoon sees the Hamilton Tiger-Cats taking on the Toronto Argonauts. If the Ticats can pull this out, they essentially have home team advantage next week in the Championship.

Totonto on the other hand, is looking to secure a win of their own coming off a mini-controversy.

The Argos started the game out hot on defense, grabbing a quick interception and putting them in prime scoring position. They were able to get close to the goal line, but they couldn’t get it past the Ticats defense. At minimum, Toronto took the early lead after Boris Bede knocked in a short 10-yard field goal, putting them up 3-0.

Hamilton still couldn’t find their rhythm, they found themselves giving the Argos possession once again. The Argonauts still couldn’t find the end zone, but they did grab three more points, with Bede knocking in another field goal.

Masoli came back in for the TiCats, but his luck didn’t change. After making some impressive moves, he fumbled the ball with the Argos getting possession and another chance to score.

Luckily for the TiCats, they were able to regain possession without giving up any points. With a new drive the TiCats coaching staff opted to bring in Dane Evans at QB in hopes to change the course of the matchup.

Although they had a new quarterback in, they ended up having the same result when they were forced to punt back to the Argonauts.

The Argos were coming out in full force. They still weren’t able to grab a touchdown, but they once again grabbed three with another successful field goal attempt. This wasn’t an easy one for Bede, but he sure made it seem like it. Nearing halftime, Toronto now held a 9-0 lead over Hamilton.

Hamilton continued to fail on offense, and the Argos were happy to capitalize. Once again, Boris Bede was able to come in clutch for Toronto, putting another field goal through the uprights, giving them a solid 12-0 lead.

The Tiger-Cats still struggled behind the ball., and ultimately the Argos defense came out strong again forcing another turnover late in the half.

Toronto held possession to end the half. Needless to say, Hamilton seemed to have shot themselves in the foot on numerous occasions, which shows in the 12-0 Argos lead.

If the Tiger-Cats wanted a chance at the Grey Cup, they were going to need to make some major adjustments in the half.

The Argos would start out the second half with the ball, but luckily for Hamilton they weren’t able to add to their lead.

Hamilton on the other hand finally found the end zone. Their first points came off a punt return, which Papi White was able to run back 92-yards to put six on the boards.

The Argos seemed like a different team in the second half, once again not able to get the ball moving. With the Tiger-Cats now back in control they seemed to be stuck punting it back to Toronto. But, the team successfully faked the punt and moved the chains giving them a first down.

This proved to be wise, as Hamilton seemed to finally find their groove. Dade Evans found a wide-open Acklin who was able to grab the ball and move it into the end-zone. Hamilton attempted a two-point conversation, but were not able to take the lead. But, for the first time since the beginning of the game it was now tied, 12-12.

With the Argos behind the ball again, they were hoping to retake the lead. They still could get into the end zone, but they took another chance at a field goal. Unfortunately, this may have been one too many for Bede, as he missed his first kick of the afternoon.

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Ending the third quarter the Argonauts once again punted the ball, meaning whoever can win the 4th wins the game.

Hamilton knew that they could gain control of this game with this drive. The Argonauts that they saw in the first half have gone mild, and they were hoping to get that home team advantage in the championship game.

Dane Evans was out for the kill. Not only did he bring his team to the goal line, he worked his magic with a quarterback sneak to grab another touchdown for the Ticats. This was also Hamilton’s first lead of the game, and honestly it’s probably the best time for that to happen.

After a successful 2-point conversion they now lead the Argos 20-13 with 11:08 left in the game.

The Argos suck at 3-1, put it all on the line. At first it looked like a turnover, but they were saved by the refs when they called the Tiger-Cats for offsides. This allowed the Argos a first down and another chance with the ball.

With a little over 8-minutes left, time was running out. Luckily only one score separated the teams, giving Toronto hope in the fourth.

At the end of the drive, they still could not find the end zone, but Bede once again came in clutch. This time he knocked it in for 47-yards, bringing the matchup to 20-16.

Dane Evans and the Tiger-Cats were now out for the kill, they could feel how close they were to a victory.

Once again Evans was able to bring the team to the goal line, and once again he was able to sneak it into the end zone, extending their lead. After a successful field goal, they know led the Argos 27-16

Bethel-Thompson and the Argonauts knew that this was probably their last time to strike, and they sure played like it. They moved the ball, they moved the chains, but not enough to get a touchdown. Boris Bede once again grabbed points for Toronto, but with 1:10 remaining they still trailed 27-19.

With Hamilton now in control of the ball and the game, they did what they needed to do; run out the clock.

At the end of the day it was a tale of two halves. Toronto came out strong in the first, but because they never found the end zone it left them open for the Tiger-Cats to fight back. Once we got to the second half, Hamilton made the right adjustments and were able to start getting the ball moving.

We now know half of the teams that will be participating in the Grey Cup next week, and more importantly we now know that Hamilton will have a home team advantage. The Grey Cup will be televised in Canada on TSN as usual, but fans in the United States will be able to tune in on ESPN2 or ESPN+.

We look forward to the next game to see who the Tiger-Cats will take on, will it be the Saskatchewan Roughriders or the Winnipeg Blue Bombers?

Which matchup would you like to see in this years Grey Cup? Let us know down in the comments below or join the conversation on Discord.