From the Lions' Den

Another bye week means another opportunity to muse on the state of the franchise so to speak, a chance to think about what was, what is, and what might have been.

For fans of the BC Lions, it’s hard to complain about the overall performance of the team so far this year; after a shaky start, Lions have outclassed in a few games, and lucked out in others. The Jekyll and Hyde aspect has mostly disappeared from the team’s mindset.

Two byes in 3 weeks (brought about by the CFL’s suspension of the Ottawa Renegades in April) could be a blessing or a curse, depending on how one views it. A chance to heal, or a chance to allow the rust to build up are basically the choices involved. As far as injuries go, it’s hard not to speculate on what might have happened had quarterback Dave Dickenson sat out the game in Montreal; would he have healed completely by now? One would think so, but nevertheless, healed or not, SuperDave gets the start on Saturday against the Montreal Alouettes in the rematch at the Dome on Beatty Street.

Notable happenings in Lionland recently include the contract extension to Otis Floyd, which is seen as huge for the Lions’ Defence. No linebacker in recent memory (including Barrin Simpson) has had such an impact on opposing defences. Also, from the marketing departments of BC Ferries and the BC Lions football club comes a much awaited 11:30 PM sailing of BC Ferries from the Vancouver side at Tsawassen to the Victoria side on Vancouver Island, Swartz Bay. This is huge, as Island Lions’ fans have had to fork over for hotels for many years now, and this will help both the club, and the fans on the Island. BC Ferries marketing director Dale Ryan says that so far, response has outstripped her wildest dreams; she never knew that so many traveled from the Island to BC Place. She has put on 3 more Ferries for Island fans for remaining games in the 2006 season, and likely will repeat the late night sailings in 2007.

It’s great when the fans finally get listened to.

The Club itself has practiced this week of course, after the CFLPA mandated time off. Coach Buono says that the squad looks not at all rusty, and are anxious to get back on the field. I think the fans feel very much the same way.

Finally, this weekend marks a special occasion for Lions fans. The 8^th of 9 “Connections”, former Lions Roy DeWalt and Mervyn Fernandez were voted the best ever Lions Qb-receiver connection recently. Quarterback Roy DeWalt will visit BC Place once more this coming Saturday, to say a few words to the people that supported him.

Your faithful scribe will probably not sit down for a long time after he speaks. Roy was one of our best ever.