Lewis will be ‘ready to go’

Alouettes expect top receiver will play against Tiger-Cats despite injury

Khari Jones will have one of his top playmakers on the field for Sunday’s CFL East Division final.

The Montreal head coach was emphatic Saturday that receiver Eugene Lewis will play when the Alouettes face the Hamilton TigerCats at Tim Hortons Field. Lewis didn’t practise Thursday because of a hip injury and was limited Friday. He was Montreal’s top receiver with 62 catches for 964 yards and nine touchdowns.

“I don’t know if anyone is 100 per cent right now, but the plan is for him to play,” Jones said. “I’ve been assured he’ll be ready to go.”

That didn’t exactly take Hamilton head coach Orlondo Steinauer by surprise.

“We’re preparing for what we’ve seen on tape and that’s their best players, their best foot forward,” Steinauer said. “Obviously we respect our opponents ... but the majority of our focus continues to be on ourselves. Whoever shows up, we’re going to play against.”

Montreal’s offence led the CFL in net yards (371.8 per game) and time of possession (33 minutes, 19 seconds), and was second in offensive points (22.7) and TDs (31). The Alouettes also averaged a leaguebest 144.5 rushing yards anchored by William Stanback, the East’s outstanding player, who ran for a league-leading 1,176.

Hamilton’s defence, however, allowed a league-low 79.6 rushing yards per game and just 16.1 offensive points, second to Winnipeg. The Ticats also forced 20 turnovers and registered a CFL-best nine interceptions.

The teams split the season series 1-1. Stanback ran for 99 yards on 24 carries (4.1-yard average) in those matchups.

“He’s a great back; he’s a key to the offence,” Hamilton defensive tackle Ted Laurent said of Stanback. “However he goes, that’s how they go. We’ve been prepping that all week.”

Hamilton will face Montreal quarterback Trevor Harris for the first time this season. Veteran Vernon Adams Jr. started both regularseason games before a season-ending shoulder injury that led to the Alouettes acquiring Harris from Edmonton.

“He’s a champion. He understands where to go with the football,” Steinauer said of Harris. “The difference would be, obviously, in athletic ability. I don’t see the offence changing a ton ... (But) one thing I’ve learned about playoff football: It’s the game within the game. You can have your plan and if you want to stick to it, it better be damn good. But you better be able to adjust.”

Montreal was 4-3 on the road this year and 5-3 within the East Division, with a defence that led the CFL in sacks with 49.

Don Jackson will start at running back for the Tiger-Cats, only his fifth appearance this season.

“He’s just dynamic,” Steinauer said. “There could be something there and he’ll find a way to get seven. There could be plays where there’s seven but he finds a way to get 25.”

Jackson has 245 yards on 44 carries with a touchdown, along with eight catches for 94 yards and a major. He only ran for 34 yards on 12 carries in last week’s 24-3 home win over Saskatchewan. But Ticats quarterback Jeremiah Masoli said those numbers don’t tell the whole story.

“We had a couple of second-andthree, second-and-four (situations) where he got hit at the line of scrimmage and was able to keep his feet going and fall forward for the first down,” Masoli said.

“Stuff like that is priceless, to be able to keep the drives going and move the chains.

“On top of that, he’s an explosive guy. At any point there could be an explosive play.”