This past weekend, the Lions football team unveiled York’s brand new artificial turf as they played host to the Laurier GoldenHawks in front of a rowdy crowd at York Stadium. Despite having to play through rain for most of the afternoon, the Lions were able to pull off a huge second-half comeback to defeat the Golden Hawks 33-20.
It cannot be stressed enough how much this win means to the program since the Lions have been consistently losing to upperechelon programs in the Ontario University Athletics league for the better part of a decade. Last season, the Lions proved that they could compete with Laurier, with the Golden Hawks barely sneaking past them on a last-minute touchdown, but by overcoming a 15-5 defi cit at halftime on September 7, the Lions proved they are legitimate playoff contenders in 2013.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=RzQ7WeHaN3M&list=UUjDi6F8sq1k1gZvg3Yfbbpw
“Guys, we got to play.”
“[I’m] very proud of the guys fighting back from adversity,” Lions’ head coach Warren Craney said after the victory. “A couple years ago, they would have just buckled, and we would have lost, but they kept fighting through, and I am pretty proud of that.”
The Lions experienced a Jekyll and Hyde effect in their win over Laurier, coming out sluggish and unable to mentally place themselves in the game. The rain was coming down hard, and dropped balls, defensive lapses, and penalties plagued York as the Golden Hawks slowly gained a 15-5 lead before the break. Growing visibly frustrated on the sidelines as the missteps piled up, Craney knew he had to straighten his team out at halftime if they were going to come back. “There was a lot said,” Craney explains with a chuckle. “We made a bunch of adjustments on defence, but the biggest thing was
I told them was, ‘Guys, we got to play.’ We definitely left a lot of stuff out there in the first half, so our leaders stepped up, and they made it happen.” One of those leaders who stepped up in a major way was Lions’ offence started rolling in the second half, starting with a quick 18-yard touchdown strike from Gibbon to his receiver Ryan Dunaway.
“The bigger the crowd we get, the more energy we feel as players.”
The Lions continued their relentless attack throughout the third quarter with touchdown runs from both Errol Brooks and Gibbon, racking up 23 unanswered points along the way to take the lead 28-15.
Late pressure from the Golden Hawks made the game interesting, but in the end the Lions would not be stopped, holding off Laurier for a 33-20 win.
The atmosphere at York Stadiumwas electric due to the FroshFrenzy event, which involved Lions’ giveaways, but the players want to see a crowd that size every week.
“The bigger the crowd we get, the more energy we feel as players because we love to put a show on for the fans,” says defensive lineman Michael Livingston, who finished with two sacks. “It’s what this game is about — it is not about us, it’s not about the coaches; it’s about these people in the stands watching us and them having a good time.”
Gibbon came to York last year knowing there were some rough days ahead, but he hopes the Lions’ win over Laurier is a sign of better things to come.
“It’s huge. I envisioned us winning games, getting fans back out here and making the coaches happy. This is exactly what we wanted,” he says. The Lions now face a match up with the defending Yates Cup team, the McMaster Marauders on September 14 at Ron Joyce Stadium in Hamilton.
Craney understands this won’t be an easy game, but he is still confident in his team’s direction after their momentous win over Laurier. “We have to focus on our plan. We came into this season wanting to be a playoff team, so regardless of who our opponent is, that’s not going to change.”
Ryan McCabe
Sports & Health Editor
