‘We can’t let this one slip away’: Ticats determined to make up for Grey Cup heartbreakers

Hamilton Tiger Cats' Brandon"Speedy" Banks, left, and teammate Simoni Lawrence joke around during warm-up before CFL football game action against the Toronto Argonauts, in Hamilton, Ont., Saturday, Nov. 2, 2019.Simoni Lawrence woke from a late-afternoon nap on Monday and peered outside to see the Hamilton area’s first heavy snowfall of the season. The Tiger-Cats star linebacker jumped up excitedly and hustled his dog Willow outdoors to play fetch.

As Hamilton deals with the early dump of snow, the players can sense the growing excitement in the region before the sold-out game at Tim Hortons Field. Lawrence says he has noticed more fans approaching him in public during this season, such as the boisterous one who hollered out his name in a Shoppers Drug Mart this week and drew in more chatty supporters to gather round.

Lawrence often carpools to practice with slotback Brandon Banks – the East nominee for the CFL’s most-outstanding-player award after leading the league in receiving yards and touchdowns . Banks was also with the Ticats during those Cup losses; he had his late-game 90-yard punt return for a touchdown nullified in the 2014 Grey Cup because of a teammate’s illegal-blocking penalty.

The thriving Ticats have galvanized Hamilton in times of civic hardship. Recent bad-new stories included the tragic stabbing of 14-year-old Hamilton boy Devan Bracci-Selvey outside his high school. Statistics Canada showed Hamilton to have the highest rate of police-reported hate crimes in the country. There were protests at City Hall by members of the yellow-vest movement and far-right groups. Violence erupted at its Pride festival.

“One of the most common calls to our customer-service line this week has been ‘What time do the parking lots open on Sunday?,’” Matt Afinec, Ticats president and COO, said. “That should tell you how fans might be feeling about going to this game. The answer is 7 a.m.”

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