‘So nice to be around people again’: Riders fan reflects on first home game of season

An announced crowd of more than 33,000 arrived at a sold-out Mosaic Stadium on Friday to watch the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders play their first regular-season game in almost two years.

One of those fans cheering loudly was Donna Schell, who described the experience of watching the Riders play once again as surreal.

“The minute that I got in the stadium, I was so anxious to get to my seat because of the opening ceremony. I really couldn’t wait to see that,” Schell said. “I was racing to my seat so fast, I did not feel uncomfortable for one minute once we got in and all those touchdowns started.

“Everybody was high-fiving everybody. It was just so nice to be around people again.”

The experience as a whole was much different than in years past.

The clear bag policy along with all tickets being scanned digitally were unique additions for fans preparing to enter the stadium.

“I’ve never seen lineups like that before to get into the stadium,” Schell said. “I don’t know if it was the new clear bag policy and they were checking people’s bags or if there was problems with their ticket scanners.

“It was absolutely crazy. I was really surprised.”

Schell noted she was surprised she didn’t see any sanitization stations or many signs regarding COVID while she was in the stadium, but she did reiterate that she did not feel anxious while being surrounded by more than 30,000 people.

The Riders were victorious in their matchup against the B.C. Lions and have a 1-0-0 record.

Fans will flock into Mosaic Stadium once again on Saturday, when the Riders play host to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.