Winnipeg earns rare Labour Day Classic win, beats Riders 23-8

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers accomplished their goal of quieting the Saskatchewan Roughriders faithful — and a high-powered Riders offence — in a 23-8 win at Mosaic Stadium on Sunday.

It was only the second time in the past 16 Labour Day Classics that the Bombers have emerged with the win in Regina, the last coming in a 28-25 win in 2016.

The win gives the Bombers (4-1) top spot in the CFL’s West Division over the Riders (3-1).

Saskatchewan linebacker Micah Teitz admitted the most frustrating thing about the loss is the expectations the Roughriders had for themselves.

“I think everybody on the team knows we have such a great ball club and we know the Labour Day games are more magnified than ever,” Teitz said.

The Winnipeg defence sacked Riders quarterback Cody Fajardo three times and provided pressure to force him into throwing three interceptions — two by Brandon Alexander and one by Deatrick Nichols. Fajardo finished the game with 23 pass completions and 213 yards to go along with the three picks.

“It was tough. (It was) probably the worst game I’ve played, definitely as a professional,” Fajardo said after the game. “We were just waiting for something to pop. It seemed like every single time we were going, something went wrong.

“I didn’t put us in a good situation so I let our offence down, our defence down, our special teams down and Rider Nation down. The silver lining is that game only counts for two points. It’s not like we lost the West final and our season is over.”

It was the second straight game against Winnipeg the Riders haven’t scored a touchdown. Saskatchewan also was held out of the end zone in the 2019 West final — a 20-13 loss to the Bombers at Mosaic Stadium.

In that game, Fajardo hit the crossbar of the north end zone goalpost on the game’s final play. On Sunday, Fajardo hit the south crossbar on a pass to slotback Kyran Moore.

“I think that was the cherry on top of what kind of day it was. Maybe that goalpost was a little jealous because I went to the other one at the beginning of the year and squashed our beef and maybe it got a little jealous,” Fajardo said.

“I’ve hit both of them. I should be good going forward but no promises. I couldn’t help but laugh.”

Head coach Craig Dickenson admitted it still feels like the Winnipeg defence is something the Roughriders need to figure out if they have Grey Cup aspirations. After five games this season, the Bombers’ defence is giving up an average of 13.4 points a game.

“That’s a well-coached team, they’re very physical on both sides of the ball and I think you see why they are leading the league on defence,” Dickenson said. “They beat us across the board and they deserve to walk out winners here tonight.”

Winnipeg running back Andrew Harris rushed for 95 yards and caught two passes for 27 yards. Prior to the game, he had said: “There’s nothing better than shutting up 30,000 fans in their building and that’s what we’re aiming to do.”

“We just have to be better, our front seven especially, against them next week and really get after them,” Teitz said.

Defensive lineman Micah Johnson was a late scratch for the game and Teitz admitted his presence was missed.

“He’s a great player and definitely a demanding player who demands everyone’s respect out there,” Teitz said. “(Defensive linemen) Garrett Marino and Makana Henry are great players as well. I think they did a good job as well and I always have the highest respect for the D-linemen.

“We have to learn to play without guys sometimes. It’s a long season and people are going to go down.”

Fajardo said Bombers defensive end Willie Jefferson might have been talking trash during the game, but the quarterback says that’s just part of the game.

“It’s easy to talk crap when you’re kicking the other team’s butt so that’s just part of football,” Fajardo said. “The best way to make people not talk crap is to play well and we didn’t do that and I didn’t do that so I deserved all the smack talk I could get out there because I played a terrible game.”

Winnipeg quarterback Zach Collaros was efficient in the game. The former Riders pivot completed 19 of 27 pass attempts for 245 yards and a touchdown to slotback Nic Demski. Collaros’ lone interception went o Saskatchewan defensive back Ed Gainey.

Backup quarterback Sean McGuire scored two of the Bombers’ touchdowns, taking in two quarterback sneaks from the one-yard line.

Winnipeg kicker Marc Liegghio was 1-for-3 when it came to field goals and was good on his two converts.

Saskatchewan kicker Brett Lauther was good on two of three field-goal attempts, missing his first of the season in the game to score a rouge. Punter Jon Ryan also contributed a single point on a punt.

Penalties proved to be an issue for the Riders throughout the game. They took 13 penalties for 102 yards in the matchup. Dickenson admitted it’s a concern.

“I’m a little concerned about it. We have some guys who are taking liberties and guys that should know better,” Dickenson said. “We’re still trying to find our team. It’s only four games in and the reality is (between the fourth and 14th games) who you’ve got on the field is going to be different.”

Now the Riders turn their attention to the Banjo Bowl and try to even the season series at one apiece in Winnipeg on Saturday.

“We just have to understand we’re not a bad football team; we just had a bad game,” Fajardo said. “(If) you have one bad game, it’s not like your season is over. We have 10 more games to play and we have some great opportunities and some good defences coming our way.”